Michael Flatley: "Cancer made me determined to live every moment"

February 6, 2020

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Lord of the Dance Michael Flatley has spoken about his battle with cancer and how his perspective on life was changed forever by the deadly disease.

Flatley was diagnosed with malignant melanoma in 2003, He admitted the news made him determined to “live every moment”.

The Riverdance star was speaking on BBC Radio 2 about his career, and how he feared it would all be cut short by the deadly form of skin cancer.

Ogham, the mysterious language of the trees The Origins of the Ogham alphabet are still a mystery for many historians, but it is primarily thought to be an early form of the Irish written Language.

He said: “The value of friends, the value of loved ones – all of a sudden, material things faded away into the past.

“My art and the people that I spend time with are the things that I love most now. Cancer certainly gave me tremendous focus.”

Flatley has rarely spoken about his battle with cancer. After being diagnosed, he kept his condition private and away from the public eye. Thankfully, he responded well to the treatments and in 2006 he announced that he had beaten the disease, saying: “I’m completely fine now, thank God.”

Flatley also discussed how he retired because decades of performing had taken their toll on his body. He had planned to quit after a final show in New York in 2015, but revealed that he has been offered big money to end his career in Las Vegas on St Patrick’s Day 2016.

“We received a big offer to put our show on in Las Vegas with me finishing on St Patrick’s Day, so I had to take a look at that.”