'I prayed a lot': Megadeth's Dave Mustaine details cancer diagnosis in new interview

In his first interview since being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, thrash metal icon Dave Mustaine says he turned to his family, faith and the “people around the globe praying for me” during his treatment. 

The interview, published Tuesday by Rolling Stone, outlines how Mustaine learned about his diagnosis — a “squamous cell carcinoma on the base of my tongue,” he said — and detailed what fueled his positive mindset during recovery. 

On how he took the news, Mustaine said: “I went, ‘(expletive).’ And I thought, ‘OK, Mustaine. You can do this.’ And we commenced kicking this thing’s ass. I thought about every single trick that I had learned about healing my body and the things I’d learned from martial arts, and I did everything that the doctor said to a T, and hopefully this is the end of it and I never hear of it again. But I feel great.”  

The Megadeth co-founder and head-banging torchbearer shared in June that he'd been diagnosed with cancer. The band subsequently canceled 2019 tour dates. 

The Grammy Award-winning guitarist and songwriter played an integral role in the massive popularity of 1980s and 1990s thrash metal. Genre experts consider Megadeth one of the "big four" of thrash — a list including Metallica (of which Mustaine was a member prior to Megadeth), Anthrax and Slayer.

Along with sociopolitical anthem "Peace Sells," Megadeth may be best known for the 1990's "Rust In Peace" album, a genre staple that features pinnacle thrash tracks such as "Hanger 18" and "Holy Wars …" 

Mustaine isn’t yet in remission, the article said. But he’s finished treatment and continues to rehabilitate. Megadeth returns to the road in early 2020 for a string of European dates. 

The article continued to detail who reached out to Mustaine after he made his diagnosis public (including Ozzy Osbourne and former bandmate James Hetfield) and the role faith played in his recovery. 

“I’ve been praying for a long time, and when this whole thing went down, I prayed a lot,” he told Rolling Stone. “I don’t force it on anybody; I never would do that. But I prayed about it, and I believe that that was the whole reason I got healed so fast.” 

Read the full interview via rollingstone.com.