KUALA LUMPUR: South Korean artiste Jang Keun-suk recently revealed that he has been battling thyroid cancer since last October.
The 37-year-old singer-actor recently announced this on his YouTube channel, shocking many of his fans.
He kept the diagnosis a secret for a while and only felt comfortable sharing the news with his fans after he had undergone surgery.
"Hello, this is Jang Keun-suk. I have something to confess", he said in the video.
"It has been two weeks since I've had surgery."
"Would people be surprised if they knew?" he asked.
In the video, Jang said he still had trouble opening his mouth fully.
However, he also assured the public that his surgery went well.
"I have been so scared for the past eight days (after the surgery) because I couldn't move properly, I couldn't exercise, I couldn't do anything," he said.
The video also showed him recovering at a hospital where he was seen with a slightly swollen face with tissue paper in his mouth.
Words on the screen read: "Thankfully, results from my two-week follow-up check-up after the surgery are good. I'm glad that I can tell everyone the news in this manner. I'm very healthy now."
Jang's management agency later confirmed with South Korean media that he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in October 2023 and underwent surgery in May.
Jang recently appeared in the South Korean Netflix reality series The Influencer, which premiered on Aug 6.
He is best known for his early work in idol dramas such as Beethoven Virus (2008) and You're Beautiful (2009).
The latter made him famous in Japan and Southeast Asia which saw him being dubbed the 'Asia Prince'.
As a singer, his Japanese EP Let Me Cry landed at the top of Japan's Oricon singles chart after its release in 2011.
He became the first non-Japanese act to have a debut single claim the top spot.