John Farnham reveals the devastating outcome of his cancer battle

In a devastating revelation, Aussie singing sensation John Farnham has opened up about the heart-wrenching aftermath of his battle with cancer.

In August 2022, Farnham underwent surgery and treatment for mouth cancer. After enduring multiple surgeries, eight weeks of radiation therapy, and overcoming several challenges, Farnham received the “all-clear” from doctors in July 2023 and was declared cancer-free.

While fans were elated that Farnham had overcome his cancer battle, the beloved singer has now shared that the surgery that saved his life has unfortunately left him unable to sing.

“My facial disfigurement from the surgery means I can’t open my mouth wide enough for a strip of spaghetti, let alone to sing,” Farnham revealed in an excerpt from his memoir published by the Sydney Morning Herald. 

“I can’t get the movement to make the sounds I want to make, that’s where the vibrations and my voice come from. It’s a very disconcerting thing. And trying hurts.”

Despite the challenges he is currently faced with, Farnham is holding on to hope that he will be able to perform again one day.

“I was given a gift and to be able to get out there and affect people in some way was special, I would like to continue doing that,” he said.

“Though I am not putting all my hopes into it, we’ll see.”

Farnham is set to tell more of his story with the release of his memoir, The Voice Inside.

The book will explore Farnham’s rise to fame as well as his recent health scare and the loss of his close friend and manager Glenn Wheatley.

“Having been asked many times, it finally felt like the right time to sit down and tell my story,” Farnham previously said.

“It is a very strange feeling looking back on my life, on the good and the bad, and now that I have started it is all rushing back.

Farnham is widely considered one of Australia’s most popular performers and is known for his highly successful 1986 album Whispering Jack which became the biggest-selling Australian album of all time by a local artist and held the top spot on the charts for 25 weeks. In the same year his solo single You’re the Voice also reached the number one spot.