jeff-bridges-speaks-out-about-near-death-experience-amid-cancer-battle

Jeff Bridges Speaks Out About Near-Death Experience Amid Cancer Battle

Jeff Bridges is one of the most iconic actors of his generation. His instantly recognizable roles include films like The Big Lebowski, Crazy Heart, and True Grit where he recreated the role John Wayne made famous. However, it nearly all came to an end in 2020 when the actor began treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Doctors found a 12-inch mass inside his body. Luckily for Bridges, his doctors found the right blend of medication and chemotherapy to treat his illness and move his cancer into remission relatively quickly. But that wasn’t the end of the fight.

His fight with cancer left his body in a severely immunocompromised state. And shortly after his last chemotherapy treatment, he tested positive for COVID-19. He spoke about the experience in an interview with Fox News. After a short but hard-fought battle with cancer, Bridges said his body “had no resources to fight” a COVID-19 infection.

“Shortly after finding out that good news, I got a letter from the treatment center where I was getting my chemo, and they told me that there was a possibility that I had been exposed to COVID,” Bridges said. “That meant me being in the hospital for five weeks, very close to, you know, kicking the bucket. I mean, I was very sick.”

Jeff Bridges Finds the Right Treatment for Himself

After the near-death experience, Bridges became reluctant to travel. As an immunocompromised person, he realized the dangers of the infection had not disappeared. But his doctor recommended getting an EVUSHELD injection, which contains long-acting monoclonal antibodies.

“I followed his instruction and got my shots and off I went to promote my film and turns out I didn’t get COVID. Then I came back to Montana and my wife, turns out she had COVID, and I didn’t get it,” he explained. “So I figured, wow, this stuff, you know, this looks like this works. And to be a part of the campaign to turn other people on to this, I thought was a good thing to do.” 

Bridges then got involved with the Up The Antibodies campaign. Which aims to raise awareness for immunocompromised people to know their options to stay safe in a post-pandemic world.

“For people like me who are immunocompromised, wow, it makes all the difference. I’m a guy who likes to hug people and see my family. That’s not that unusual I don’t think,” Bridges said. “This allows me to, you know, be a little more confident that I’m going to be all right when I do those things.”

Bridges said the EVUSHELD injection is different from a vaccine. When combined, they help boost the immune systems of immunocompromised individuals to provide extra support.

“If you’re immunocompromised talk to your doctor about taking this long-acting monoclonal antibody,” Bridges said. “Find out if you’re a candidate for that kind of treatment, so you can go out and live your life, do the kinds of things that you love to do without being so concerned about getting COVID because it’s still around.”