Fans of Saved by the Bell were shocked earlier this month when it was revealed that Dustin Diamond, who starred on the '90s hit sitcom as a teen, had been hospitalized in Florida and was thought to have cancer. Unfortunately, it turned out that that diagnosis was correct, but we know what will be next for the former teen star now that Diamond had completed his first round of chemotherapy treatments.
Dustin Diamond had to be taken to the hospital almost two weeks ago after complaining of pain "all over his body," along with a "general sense of unease." Once doctors began running tests, they were able to confirm that he had cancer and began to treat him. According to a new report from TMZ, Diamond's team has confirmed that he was diagnosed with stage 4 small cell carcinoma, which is also known as advanced lung cancer, but in his case, it's believed that the cancer started somewhere else in Diamond's body and then metastasized in his lungs. Now that he's finished his first round of chemo, a second round will be scheduled soon.
Representatives for Dustin Diamond say that he's also set to begin physical therapy before long, but note that he's keeping a positive attitude in light of his cancer diagnosis, and doing everything he can to deal with his condition. Diamond is said to be spending his free time right now making videos for fans on social media, learning to play songs by Tool and the Foo Fighters on his bass guitar, and is also looking forward to when he can spend more time with his girlfriend. He's also received a lot of well-wishes and mail from fans, which should be sure to help keep his spirits up.
The actor hasn't had the smoothest road since his time on Saved by the Bell ended. Diamond came back into the public eye back in 2006, when he released a sex tape, and then wrote a book about his time on the beloved show, titled Behind the Bell, in 2009. The book supposedly revealed all of the sordid behind the scenes secrets of the cast, which did not make his former costars happy. But, Diamond later said the book was ghostwritten and apologized for it in 2016. Two years before that apology, he spent some time in prison for a bar fight that led to someone being stabbed, and was arrested again after violating his probation, which also happened in 2016.
Diamond was able to make amends with at least some of his former castmates after apologizing for his book, and Mario Lopez was one of the first to speak out after he was hospitalized. Lopez told fans that he spoke with Diamond and also shared his well wishes on social media, so it's good that Diamond seems to have been able to repair at least one of those relationships.
Those who've checked out the Saved by the Bell revival on Peacock will know that Dustin Diamond's Screech did not make any appearances on the new series, with his character's complete absence being explained because of him living on the International Space Station. Even though producers have never said there were any plans to bring Diamond back into the fold in any way, hopefully Dustin Diamond will beat his diagnosis, and get a shot at a cameo in Season 2 of the revival, which was recently given the greenlight.
As we all hope for Dustin Diamond's continued recovery, you can relive his time on Saved by the Bell on Peacock, along with the Screech-less Season 1 of the revival.
