Duran Duran Guitarist Andy Taylor Battling ‘As Hard As He Can’ With Stage 4 Cancer, Simon Le Bon Says

Andy Taylor, founding Duran Duran member and guitarist, continues his battle with stage 4 prostate cancer in the new year. Taylor, 63, revealed his diagnosis in November 2022, saying that it was asymptomatic after being diagnosed in 2018.

Bandmate Simon Le Bon spoke on Taylor’s behalf in a press conference at the Sanremo Music Festival about Taylor’s condition, calling it “very late, fourth-stage metastasized cancer.” “I am sure he would love to be here,” Bon told attendees, “He’s fighting as hard as he can, and we are with him in that fight.”

Taylor announced his diagnosis through his bandmates, Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Roger Taylor, reading a letter on his behalf at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction speech in Los Angeles. Following the announcement, Le Bon told fans that Andy had been told he would require “palliative, end-of-life care” from his doctor. Le Bon told fans that the group has managed to stay together through decades because there have been no disputes over money.

“There is something between us that keeps us together,” he said, “First of all, we love the music we make together. Nobody else makes music like we do. We’ve all tried to do things independently, and it just doesn’t seem as exciting as when the four of us get together and work.”

“We make each other laugh, which is very important in a long relationship. We laugh when we are under stress, keeping everything light and fun. The other thing is that we split all the proceeds equally; no one takes all the publishing. We all share the finances equally.”

When speaking to The Times of London in 2023, Taylor revealed that a doctor told him about a breakthrough cancer drug, dubbing it “a nuclear medicine,” called Lutetium-177, that targets cancer cells. In August 2023, Taylor confirmed that the drug extended his life “for five years.” However, Christopher Evans, who conducted Taylor’s treatment, said the rocker was “radioactive for several days.”

“You’re going to have to say goodbye to your family,” Taylor said, recalling when he was feeling down. “You’re not going to see your grandson’s tenth birthday. Psychologically, it’s mind-blowing; you can’t have therapy to remove the certainty of death.”

When explaining the decision to keep his diagnosis a secret for years, Taylor said that he wanted his children “to be able to go about life without anyone persistently asking about my health.”