Andy Taylor, best known for playing guitar with Duran Duran, has a new lease on life five years after being diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer.
The musician has been open about undergoing a new kind of treatment this year, one that he says can target cancer cells while avoiding healthy cells. The drawback, he revealed in a new interview, is that the nuclear medicine leaves him “radioactive” for a period of time.
He started the treatment two months ago, explaining on “The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show,” “I’ve had two shots of nuclear medicine, and it literally is that, and it’s a targeted medicine that just hunts cancer cells and kills them.”
FORMER DURAN DURAN GUITARIST ANDY TAYLOR UNDERGOING CANCER TREATMENTS HE SAYS WILL EXTEND HIS LIFE
Andy Taylor was with Duran Duran from 1980 and 1986 and again from 2001 to 2006. (James Manning/PA Images/Michael Putland)
“It’s a 17-day cycle, so you’ve got to do three days before you go to hospital so you don’t have COVID, and then there’s 14 days where you can’t travel, you can’t sleep in the same bed, you’ve got to limit your contact … actually COVID was brilliant training for this.”
He continued, “It’s a nuclear medicine … you go into ICU and the nuclear department and all these nurses come in with screens and gear on, not quite hazmat, and then everything you touch, eat, it all gets thrown away, your clothes you keep in a pile for two weeks so they can de-radiate. You’ve just got to be really conscious of other people and then you feel great after about five days.”
Andy Taylor left Duran Duran for the last time in 2006. (Hayley Madden)
He said that he will undergo six rounds of this treatment, and that after the first, his doctor called him to tell him that he was asymptomatic.
“Didn’t exist five years ago,” Taylor continued of this treatment. “So five years ago when I was diagnosed, stage four, it was ‘You’ve got five years on the clock.’ Now, I’ve got another five years. I’m still in this little bit of, ‘Did this really happen? Did I really dodge a bullet?’”
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“The way I’ve landed is pretty amazing.”
He added that he has “no pain” and that he is “asymptomatic after years.”
L-R: Roger Taylor, Andy Taylor, John Taylor, Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran. (Peter Noble/Redferns)
“I shouldn’t be here, but the fact that I am is kind of mind-blowing for me and my family.”
Taylor expressed the importance of men “brothering up a bit,” because as he said, men are more reluctant to talk about their health issues with each other than women. For his part, he has been urging his friends to take PSA tests, which can detect prostate cancer, and working toward breaking the stigma around this particular type of cancer, which he said is difficult for some men to do.
“Boys, don’t be shy,” he insisted. “You’re not shy when you’ve had a few pints, so have a few pints and go to the doctor.”
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Taylor revealed that years after leaving Duran Duran, he is returning to play guitar for an upcoming album.
Group portrait of British band Duran Duran in New York City in 1981. Left to right are drummer Roger Taylor, singer Simon Le Bon, bassist John Taylor, guitarist Andy Taylor and keyboard player Nick Rhodes. (Michael Putland/Getty Images)
When asked about the possibility of performing with the band again, he answered, “That’s up to them. The fact that I’m here means I’m not really going to say no too much … It’s not like I’m ever going to knock on the door and go, ‘Should we …’ If they want to do that, I’m a very open door about it. But really, you’ve got to be asked.”
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He teased that there are “some other things in the works that are actually done and contracted that we’re working on,” and while there are not any active plans to play together – Duran Duran is currently on tour through the rest of the month – he believes they should do it for the fans.
Still, Taylor said there is “the distinct possibility” of the group reuniting for a tour.
The current lineup of Duran Duran revealed Andy Taylor’s cancer diagnosis at their induction to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
“People who are close to us have said, ‘What would be the problem?’” he said. “I’m like, ‘Well, for me there wouldn’t be. It’s just everyone’s got to be attuned to a common purpose. Why are we doing this? It could only be to blow the f—in’ lid off the fan base.’”
“Also, I’d love to play Madison Square Garden again,” he added.
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He did say that he has a small solo show planned for Sept. 30, but beyond that, he is committed to his cancer treatments for the rest of the year and understandably cannot make many plans until that is completed.
