John Cena’s been through a lot more than people might think. Yeah, he’s that big wrestling guy who’s always pumped and funny, but recently he shared something a little heavier.
Turns out, he went through skin cancer — twice. He’s now working with Neutrogena, trying to get folks to actually take sunscreen seriously. Especially with WrestleMania coming up and him facing Cody Rhodes, he decided it was time to talk about it.
Sunscreen just wasn’t a thing when he was a kid
Back when Cena was a kid, sunscreen just wasn’t really a thing. He said, “I never wore sunscreen,” and since he was born in 1977, he said people didn’t really know much about sun safety back then.
It just wasn’t common knowledge.
Florida sunshine didn’t help either
Later on, he ended up living in Florida — tons of sunshine. And even then, he didn’t really take care of his skin.
He said he kinda ignored it and didn’t bother using sunscreen. Just kept going out in the sun like nothing could go wrong.
He didn’t think it would ever happen to him
“I didn’t want to have a routine and I also thought the problem would never reach me,” he said.
He figured he’d be fine. But he was outside all the time with barely any protection, and eventually it caught up to him.
One quick skin check changed everything
One day he went to a dermatologist just to get his skin checked out, and boom — they found something.
A cancerous spot, right on his chest, near his pec. That had to be a pretty jarring moment.
His doctor helped him get through the shock
Luckily, it was something they could take care of. Cena said his dermatologist was amazing — really guided him through it.
“Held me by the hand and let me know that I wasn’t alone,” is how he put it. That kind of support helped him process everything — including all the overwhelming facts that come with a cancer diagnosis.
He said he learned a lot about the stats and risks, but realized something important: numbers don’t always make people take action.
“The best way to hammer home a point is human-to-human connection,” he said. Real stories, not just statistics, is what really hits people and makes it stick.
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That phone call hit hard
“And I as a human can tell you: Man, that phone call’s not what you want to get because it is unpredictable and you don’t know how bad it’s going to be,” he said.
That moment when you find out is just full of uncertainty. Your brain immediately jumps to the worst-case stuff.
It happened again a year later
About a year later, he had another spot removed. So yeah, it wasn’t just a one-time thing.
He admitted his mind still drifts toward the worst sometimes. It’s hard not to.
Sunscreen is now non-negotiable for him
Now he’s way more serious about sunscreen. His dermatologist helped coach him through the whole thing, and that stuck.
He said he’s in a really good place now. “I’m so grateful to be able to dodge those two bullets, but I wear them as a reminder of, ‘hey man, you need to take the extra few seconds to protect yourself every day.’”
It’s just part of his routine now.
Retirement is coming, but not goodbye
Lately, Cena’s been traveling all over Europe and the UK with WWE, gearing up for what’ll be his last WrestleMania match. He’s facing Cody Rhodes, and it’s a big deal.
For the first time ever, Cena’s turned “heel” (basically the bad guy), and fans were totally shocked. He’s going for his 17th title — something no one else has done.
After this year, he’s retiring from the ring, but he’s not leaving WWE. He’ll stick around as an ambassador and focus more on acting.
