Dwyane Wade Reveals Shocking Cancer Diagnosis Led to Kidney Removal

Former 13-time All-Star Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade made a bombshell revelation on his podcast "The Why With Dwyane Wade" recently, when he divulged that he developed a cancerous mass in one of his kidneys, ultimately leading to the removal of a significant portion of the organ.
#DwyaneWade says he had to have nearly half of one his kidneys removed from his body in order to rid himself of a cancerous mass.
— TMZ (@TMZ) January 30, 2025
Full story HERE ➡: https://t.co/mgNAHUSwf9
📽️: The Why with Dwayne Wade pic.twitter.com/JmmbWsjJX2
"I went in to get myself checked out. Turned 40 years old, and I went in and I was like, 'Doc, I want to know everything about my body, head-to-toe. I've got some things that I'm feeling, I've got some stomach issues. These are the things I want us to check, but also check everything," Wade said.
More Ball Around: Will Jimmy Butler's Legacy with Heat be Affected by Dwyane Wade Comments?
"I'm asking these questions because now, my father has [gone] through something... it's possible that I may go through it," Wade said. "They were able to see something that was on my kidney, on my right kidney when I went in. Didn't go in for my kidney. And so what I had on my kidney was a cyst, a tumor. But, it was not nothing that could be biopsied... unless they went in and surgically removed it."
The Hall of Famer had been dealing with the ailment in private before making the announcement on his show.
"I get to see everything, I ask all the questions, I go to multiple doctors," Wade said. "I made a decision to have surgery... Thank god that I did do the surgery, because the tumor was cancerous. So I have one kidney, and I have another kidney that is 60 percent, they took 40 percent of my kidney to make sure that they could get all the cancer off of it."
It's a disconcerting revelation that one of the elite athletes of his generation can develop a terrifying disease at such a relatively young age, and a good reminder to everyone to get full-body physicals annually in order to catch this stuff early.
Wade, a 6-foot-4 swingman, was selected with the No. 5 overall pick out of Marquette in the legendary 2003 NBA Draft. That year's class also included Wade's eventual Hall of Fame Heat teammates LeBron James and Chris Bosh, as well as Hall of Fame-nominated forward Carmelo Anthony (he's likely to make the cut this year as a first ballot honoree) and All-Stars Chris Kaman, David West and Kyle Korver.
More Ball Around: Former Nuggets Forward Signs with Turkish Club for Remainder of Season
The former Heat superstar won three NBA titles and one Finals MVP during his tenure with the team, which extended from 2003-16 initially. He signed with his hometown Chicago Bulls as a free agent in the summer of 2016. After the club dealt away Jimmy Butler and embraced a rebuild the subsequent summer, Wade was bought out of the second season of his deal. He linked up with fellow '03 draftee James (and Korver) on the Cleveland Cavaliers, but was reacquired by the Heat in a midseason trade. Wade remained in Miami until his final NBA season, 2018-19.
More Ball Around:
Former Lakers Forward Playing Overseas Could Make NBA Comeback
Real Madrid Signs Longtime NBA Center
For more of the latest news and notes from around the wider basketball world, stay glued to Ball Around On SI.