Social Distortion’s Mike Ness Gives Hopeful Cancer Update: ‘I’m Ready for the Fight’

Mike Ness, who revealed a diagnosis of tonsil cancer in June, posted a video to Instagram on Friday updating fans on his progress. The Social Distortion frontman underwent surgery that month as a form of treatment. “[I’m] still a little weak, but it’s getting there,” Ness says in the new video.

In the clip, he plays a little bit of “Story of My Life,” a song off Social Distortion’s self-titled 1990 album that has become their calling card, and speaks to the camera while holding an acoustic guitar. “I’m into the fourth month of recovery after the surgery,” he said, standing amid lush foliage on a sunny patio. “Did it all here on the farm, which is the best thing possible. I love L.A. but the driving to treatments and appointments was brutal, so once we got here it was like, ‘This is where we need to be.'”

Ness said he’s entering “phase two,” which is radiation and six weeks of a mild chemo infusion. “[I] feel a little weird,” he said. “It’s only three days in. But ready for the fight going in the second round.”

In the video, he thanked his fans and friends for posting hopeful messages of support to him. “It meant so much, and I listened to the [as-yet-unreleased new] album every day for inspiration and I read those posts, the comments, and I really feel like my extended family of fans is also helping me through this,” he said.

Ness learned of his diagnosis during preproduction for a new album. “I was feeling well enough to continue with recording in the studio up until the very day before surgery,” he wrote in a message. “The band and I were so inspired and excited to lay down these tracks, which by the way sound f-ing AWESOME!” Ness said that doctors told him to expect a full recovery “enabling [him] to live a long and productive life.” He decided to postpone a summer Social Distortion tour and delay release of the group’s eighth album.