"They took 40% of my kidney" - Dwyane Wade shockingly reveals battling cancerous mass post-NBA retirement

Former Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade revealed he experienced a scary health scare after ending his basketball career. In a recent episode of "The Why with Dwyane Wade," the three-time NBA champion opened up about having a cancerous tumor removed from his kidney.

The new episode of his podcast was released Thursday. In the episode, Wade discussed the events that led to a medical procedure in December 2023.

“I turned 40 years old, I went in and I was like, ‘Doc, I want to know everything about my body,’” the 43-year-old former athlete said. “Because I did the full body scan and they were able to see my entire body, my entire insides, they were able to see something that was on my kidney.”

Wade said that he he had been experiencing stomach problems before seeing the doctor. He wanted to understand what was causing the issues, particularly with the flow of his urine. The former Heat star revealed that his urine was “coming out slow” and that the stream wasn’t as powerful as it used to be.

“What I had on my kidney was a cyst, a tumor, but it was nothing that could be biopsied,” he continued. “There was nothing they could test unless they went in and surgically removed it.”

This led to kidney surgery. However, Wade said he sought opinions from several other doctors before deciding to undergo the procedure.

“They took 40 percent of my kidney to make sure they can get all of the cancer off it.”

After sharing his story, Wade encouraged fans and followers to prioritize their health. He also motivated others to get regular checkups.

Fans react to Dwyane Wade's health revelation

On X (formerly Twitter), fans expressed relief as Dwyane Wade acted swiftly on his medical issue before it worsened.

"Glad he is okay 🙏🏾🙏🏾" one concerned fan said.

"Glad DWade found this early and had it removed 🙏" another fan said.

"Sheesh glad he’s ok," a fan said.

Others were inspired by Wade’s story to get regular checkups.

"Go get checked people fr fr," a fan said.

"His message is important: get your health checked often," another fan said.

"Gotta get them checkups and this is a guy who been in tip top shape majority of his life," a fan added.

Wade retired from the NBA in 2019.