Julian Lennon on His Skin Cancer Scare and Staying Healthy at 61

TL;DR

A birthmark hidden under thinning hair turned into a cancer scare after months of picking at a scab that a comb had opened; a dermatologist cut it out, confirmed it was cancerous, and got the all clear. Regular twice-a-year checkups, healthy eating, and power walking a couple times a week form a simple longevity routine.

Transcript

Joe Rogan podcast check it out The Joe Rogan Experience Train by day Joe Rogan podcast by night all day um I go to see this dermatologist oh you little more skin yeah a little excision here because it had been bothering me a bit and a couple of years ago I had a bit of a cancer scare on my head yeah because I have uh I have a birthmark here that yo... Read More

Key Insights

• Skin cancer can hide in spots you never check, like under thinning hair, where a birthmark and a comb-caught mole went unnoticed for six months of scab-picking before a dermatologist removed and tested it.
• Early dermatologist action matters: the cancerous tissue was cut out, sent off, and came back all clear, showing that acting on something that 'looks or feels a little old' can catch problems in time.
• Twice-a-year comprehensive checkups, including a comprehensive blood panel cancer screen, are part of a proactive health regime aimed at staying around long-term rather than reacting only when something goes wrong.
• Power walking a couple of times a week plus eating as healthy as possible is described as enough to 'do the trick,' with walking called one of the best forms of exercise you don't have to kill yourself doing.
• Watching older relatives sit with big bellies, cigarettes, and beer in front of the TV until heart attacks killed them in their 50s and 60s became motivation to reject that lifestyle and stay active instead.
• Depression and anxiety are ongoing struggles that can be eased by simple habits like taking a nice power walk before a stressful commitment, which was used to calm nerves before the podcast.
• Bats keep mosquito populations down by eating them, and Lady Bird Lake in Austin hosts a large bat colony that emerges at sunset, audible from the bridge and claimed on local signage to be the world's biggest.
• Lab safety failures are a real risk: an Australian laboratory lost track of hundreds of vials of deadly viruses including Hendra, Hantavirus, and Lyssavirus, which media warned could be weaponized.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did Julian Lennon discover his skin cancer?

Julian Lennon had a birthmark on his head that you don't really see, with a mole nearby. As his hair thinned, a comb caught and opened it, and he kept picking at the scab for about six months. Worried, he visited a Los Angeles dermatologist for the first time, who cut it out and sent it off. She later called to say it was cancerous, though he eventually got the all clear after it was cleaned out.

Q: Why is skin cancer on the scalp hard to catch early?

Rogan notes it was scary because the cancer was in a spot you don't check, covered in hair, so you don't know what's going on back there. Lennon explains the birthmark and thinning hair led him to keep brushing it with a comb, which caught it, caused a scab, made it itchy, and led to repeated scratching. Because scalp areas are hidden under hair, problems can go unnoticed for months, as his did over roughly six months before he sought help.

Q: What is Julian Lennon's routine for staying healthy?

Lennon says he goes for a proper checkup twice a year on every front to make sure he will be around, because he likes living and wants to be around a long time. He recently got a comprehensive blood panel screen for cancer. He does not consider himself a health freak, but his regime is to eat as healthy as he can and do power walking a couple of times a week, which he says does the trick for him.

Q: Why does Joe Rogan recommend walking as exercise?

Rogan says walking is one of the best forms of exercise, and if you can get it in every day you will be much healthier than if you don't. He notes it isn't hard to do and suggests listening to a book on tape while going for a stroll. He emphasizes it is great for the body and that you don't have to kill yourself exercising, agreeing that Lennon's power walking a couple times a week is a good approach.

Q: What motivated Julian Lennon to avoid an unhealthy lifestyle?

Lennon remembers seeing his uncles on his mother's side in their 50s and 60s sitting alone with big bellies in front of the TV, with a couple of packets of cigarettes, drinking tea and beer, and watching TV all day. That was their life until they had a heart attack and died. He decided he was not doing that, and while not a health freak, he has always tried to eat healthy and stay active instead.

Q: How does Julian Lennon manage anxiety before stressful events?

Lennon shares that he has dealt with a fair amount of depression and anxiety, and still gets pretty anxious, including feeling a bit breathless coming to the podcast that day. To cope, he went for a nice little power walk around the lake, referring to Lady Bird Lake where the bats are. Using a calming walk before a stressful commitment is his way of easing the anxiety before facing the situation.

Q: What is significant about the bats at Lady Bird Lake?

According to the conversation, the bats at the lake in Austin emerge at sunset, right at nighttime, and it is very fun to watch and to hear them, especially from the bridge. Signage there claims it is the biggest bat population in the world, though Rogan doubts that, guessing Africa or the Amazon may host larger populations. Importantly, the bats keep the mosquito population down by eating those little suckers, doing a great job on the mosquitoes.

Q: What lab safety and virus risks did they discuss?

They discussed an Australian laboratory that lost track of a bunch of serious diseases, with hundreds of vials of deadly viruses gone missing, including 100 vials of Hendra virus, two vials of Hantavirus, and 223 vials of Lyssavirus, which the media warned could be weaponized. Lyssavirus is linked to rabies, arguably the deadliest zoonotic virus. They also criticized gain-of-function research that makes viruses more infectious to humans, citing it as how earlier problems got released.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Julian Lennon recounts a cancer scare from a birthmark under his thinning hair; a mole caught by a comb turned into a scab he picked at for six months. A Los Angeles dermatologist cut it out, called during a serious meeting to say it was cancerous, then later gave the all clear after cleaning it out.

• To stay healthy at 57 while noting Rogan is 61, Lennon relies on twice-a-year checkups, a comprehensive cancer blood panel, eating as healthy as possible, and power walking a couple times a week. He rejects the sedentary, smoking, beer-drinking lifestyle he saw kill his uncles in their 50s and 60s.

• The conversation shifts to bats at Lady Bird Lake that emerge at sunset and control mosquitoes, then to lab dangers: an Australian lab losing hundreds of vials of deadly viruses, gain-of-function research making viruses more infectious, and excitement over the 28 Years Later trailer shot on an iPhone.