Soap star Ian Smith has issued a promising health update, after being diagnosed with cancer last year. The 86-year-old, who played Harold Bishop on Neighbours, was previously given a death sentence as doctors warned he might not make it past March.
But the 86-year-old has now revealed that he’s beating these odds. “That’s why I’ve got this solid grin on my face,” he said to the Guardian. “Apart from being 86, I feel good.”
In December 2024, Ian made the difficult choice to bid farewell to Neighbours upon learning he had pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma – a rare type of cancer that occurs in less than 1% of cases.
Since then, he’s undergone chemotherapy and immunotherapy to fight against two tumours ‘blazing red’ in his chest. Although he’d prepared for the worst, latest scans suggest the area is now incredibly clear ‘without a speck of red in sight’.
As a result, his life expectancy was previously moved to Christmas 2025, before doctors upped it again to Christmas 2026. “They can’t say the cancer has gone – in fact, they mustn’t, because it has come back in other people and they have died of it,” he told the publication.
“But honestly, if they told me it had come back now, I would be ready this time.” Despite personal tragedies like the loss of his wife Gail to cancer in 2019, Ian expressed deep gratitude for his ‘most privileged’ life.
In a defining moment last year he even became eligible for voluntary assisted dying (VAD), with a pharmacist proposing to send the medication to his house. Nevertheless, he declined, reluctant about the possibility of acting on a whim during low moments, according to OK!.
Determined to lean into the happiness, the cherished figure in both Australian and UK television is now looking forward to celebrating the days ahead.
What are the symptoms of lung cancer?
Lung cancer is among the most common and serious forms of the disease. NHS figures suggest that over 43,000 people are diagnosed with it every year in the UK.
While there are various types of lung cancer, some people with the condition may eventually experience a number of concerning symptoms. These include the following:
- Unexplained fatigue and weight loss
- Pain or aches when breathing or coughing
- Persistent coughing
- Breathlessness
- Coughing up blood
NHS guidance adds: “You should see a GP if you have these symptoms.”