Singer Yutaka Yamakawa appeared on Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's long-running talk show "Tetsuko's Room" (TV Asahi) broadcast on January 24th. He was told that he had stage 4 lung cancer in 2023. The cancer had spread to his brain and spinal cord. When he was told, he said, "I thought it was all over," and immediately called his brother, singer Ichiro Toba. He recalled that he didn't remember what he said because he was in a panic, but he must have said something about a funeral or a grave.
In a video message, Toba said, "Haruji (Yamakawa's real name) was feeling down a year ago. To be honest, I didn't know what to say to him. The father back home is now 100 years old. We can't lose either. Let's do some more concerts together in the future. Let's do our best."
After listening to the message with tears in her eyes and a sad expression, Yamakawa said, "My brother doesn't say much, but since he got sick, he's been calling me a lot." He calls and worries about me, asking, "Are you OK?" and "How was the test?" Many people have asked if my brother is OK, and I respond to each one carefully, which I'm grateful for.
As part of her follow-up, she visits the hospital monthly for CT scans and MRIs of her brain and chest. She says the cancer in her brain and spinal cord has "shrunken." "But I'm still scared, because every time I go (to the hospital), I really worry that it might have spread. I've made it this year, so I hope I can do my best and sing in front of you all again this year," she said, expressing her concerns.
As a message to those battling the same illness, he said, "It's important to live strong, but I also think it's necessary to depend on others, and I think it's especially good to depend on your doctor and ask them to do this or that for even small things. There's no need to be strong, because the doctor is there for you. The doctor will definitely do something."
