Hopefully they find something – they’re working hard at it – they need all kinds of money for research, and I think it’s important. It’s tough, you go through some tough times but it’s worth it to be positive. Cancer is a sickness - you can’t buy it and get out of it, you have to live with it and sometimes it’s hurtful for the people who are suffering from it and also for the families if they have loss, eventually. A lot of times, I always say that people are taking better care of their car than taking care of their bodies. Lafleur: I just hope that people consult and try to find out as much as they can about their health. TSN: Ultimately, what do you hope will come from this campaign and your involvement with it? (Lung cancer) is killing 20,000 people a year in Canada and it’s a lot of people. That’s why Merck Canada decided to have a program of awareness for people. (Stage) 4 is not as good – I’m not saying you’re going to die from it, but you’re not putting your chances on your side. I was lucky, because they diagnosed it from (Stage) 1 and most of the people that consult and go to see the doctor, they have (Stage) 4. Lafleur: Well, I was operated on for a quadruple bypass, and they found a spot on my right lung and after analyzing it, they said it was cancer. TSN: How did you get involved with this campaign, ‘Be The MVP?’ It gives them the opportunity to prevent any surgeries or anything about lung cancer if you consult your doctor. So, I think it’s going to be very helpful for people to understand, and if they want to know if they have the symptoms, they can go to BeTheMVP.ca and see the symptoms.
They just put up a website, BeTheMVP.ca, where you can get some information and also how to find out if you have symptoms for lung cancer. Merck Canada is bringing awareness to people for one reason - the lung tumour is a tough tumour to diagnose because you don’t have much about it. It’s great support for me and it encouraged me to be positive and hopefully they’ll do something about finding a cure. Lafleur: It’s really helped me out – friends, hockey fans across Canada, families. How much of that has been a boost for you in your recovery? I’m just wondering - you have not only family and friends in your corner, but the entire hockey world on social media and I see all sorts of people, well-wishers, even Bruins fans, that are hoping for the best for you. TSN: We wish you the absolute best for the results on that. It’s been a year and a half now (I’ve been) on treatment, so I want to see some results. I’m anxious, I want to see how things go. On Monday, we’re going to find out if it’s slowing down, going down.
Lafleur: Well, I have to go to a PET scan on Monday, a biopsy on Monday morning and also an MRI. TSN: How much longer do you anticipate these treatments will continue? It’s up and down - one week you sleep 20 hours a day then the following week you sleep eight hours, so it’s different. I get a treatment every week, so yesterday I got a treatment, and everything went well, and I would say the last three days I’ve felt better. Lafleur: The last three or four days, I’ve felt a lot better. TSN: First of all, I’d just like to ask you, how are you feeling these days? TSN’s Montreal bureau reporter John Lu spoke with the Hockey Hall of Famer recently about his continuing recovery, his work on the ‘Be the MVP’ initiative and his thoughts on the Canadiens this season.
Lung Cancer, launched in cooperation with Merck Canada. In the year that has followed, the 70-year-old native of Thurso, Que., has focused on his recovery and raising awareness for early detection with a new website, Be the MVP vs. In October of 2020, the Centre Hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal (CHUM) announced that Lafleur experienced a recurrence of his lung cancer. He had quadruple bypass heart surgery in September of 2019, followed by surgery a few months later to remove a lobe on one of his lungs, as well as to remove lymph nodes. It has been a difficult time for Montreal Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur, who has been dealing with various health issues over the past two years.