Vivian Campbell recently opened up about his journey with Hodgkin’s lymphoma on the ‘Lymphoma Voices‘ podcast. Diagnosed in 2013, the guitarist shared how his health has improved with ongoing treatment but also spoke about how ‘difficult’ it was to change his appearance due to the side effects of it:
“10 years ago, when I first started doing the ABVD chemo, that’s when my hair first fell out. And so that was difficult. It was mostly difficult for me because I’d had long hair my entire adult life. I literally started growing my hair long when I was about 11 or 12 years old, and it’s just gotten longer and longer. And it becomes part of your identity when it’s around for so long, especially as a guitar player. And to be honest, it was a comforting thing to me because it gave me something to hide behind when I was on stage.”
Explaining what his hair meant to him, he went on:
“I am naturally a very shy person, and I identify with being a musician. I don’t identify very much with being a performer, even though, if I’m being honest with myself, that’s really kind of what we do in Def Leppard. Yeah, we’re musicians, and we’re songwriters, we write songs, and we make records, and we record music, but when we go on tour, we’re performers, and that’s part of it. And my hair gave me something to hide behind. It was a big part of my identity for so much of my life. So it was difficult letting go of it the first time again.”
The Decision To Be Open About His Cancer
After his hair loss, Campbell bought a wig from a Los Angeles-based theatrical wig maker, aiming for a look close to his natural hair. But, not wanting to hide his health condition from the public, he chose not to wear the wig after the first time on his way back home.
The guitarist said that not having his hair on stage to hide behind was ‘liberating’ for him during the first Def Leppard performance following the hair loss. Talking more about the experience, he explained the mindset behind being open about his illness by saying:
“There’s no shame in having cancer. There’s no shame in going through treatment and wearing the effects of your treatment physically, and even being in a very public position as I was, going on tour with Def Leppard and playing in front of tens of thousands of people. Like I say, there was there was something kind of really liberating about it. It’s not my first choice, but you kind of go with it, and you own it, and you make the best of it.”
The Illness’ Effect On The Performances
Campbell underwent three chemotherapy sessions and a stem cell transplant after the diagnosis in 2013. When his cancer returned in 2015, he started using immunotherapy in addition to treatment with pembrolizumab every three weeks.
Although the guitarist missed the opening acts of Def Leppard’s summer tour that year, he joined the other members on the later treks, which came in the last few years. Now, he’s gearing up for the final three dates of the band’s 2023 World Tour, which will continue with an Australian show on November 8.
