John Tesh discloses the 'enormous amount of pain' he felt during recent cancer diagnosis

For more than 30 years, John Tesh has soothed listeners with his piano compositions. But during the past year, he’s needed his own forms of healing as he battled a resurgence of cancer.

Tesh, 69, told People magazine in an interview Tuesday that he “woke up in an enormous amount of pain” one morning in October 2020. Doctors discovered two tumors around his pelvis and wrapped around his organs.

The detection came five years after doctors diagnosed Tesh with a rare form of prostate cancer and told him he had a life expectancy of 18 months. (“It was a get-your-affairs-in-order speech,” Tesh recalled to People.)

Tesh is now cancer-free and “generally feeling well,” though he’s had his prostate removed and the tumors left only one kidney functional.

Reunited: John Tesh and Mary Hart discuss his cancer battle

Married to actress Connie Sellecca for 30 years, Tesh credits his wife for her staunch advocacy and determination to help him combat the disease.

“Ultimately my wife and I went toe-to-toe and she said, 'I am not going to abide this. This is my battle too. And you're giving up,’" he told People.

Tesh plans to share more details about his health ordeals and the “healing power of God’s word in my life” at his first-ever livestream concert, taking place Saturday (8 p.m. EDT/5 p.m. PDT) from "a cabin in the woods." Among the 12 original songs performed will be messages of inspiration.

"There's going to be a lot on there about hope and motivation and stories of healing," Tesh told People. "I'll be talking to people and answering people's questions about what I did."

Though his rise to visibility originated in the ‘80s as a high-profile sportscaster for CBS and NBC followed by his 1986-96 stint as co-host of “Entertainment Tonight” alongside friend Mary Hart, Tesh’s media presence throughout the years has been complemented by his music career.

Nominated for two Grammy Awards, including 2002’s “The Power of Love” instrumental album, Tesh also earned six Emmy Awards for sports themes. His “Roundball Rock,” written for the NBA on NBC, was resurrected in 2018 by Fox Sports during college basketball coverage.

Since 2003, Tesh has also hosted the syndicated “The John Tesh Show,” heard primarily on adult contemporary, Christian and soft rock formats and also hosts, with actor Gib Gerard, the “Intelligence for Your Life” podcast.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: John Tesh cancer returns, doctors found two tumors around his organs