Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy revealed that he recently “beat” cancer after his podcast co-hosts pointed out a scar on his neck.
“Do you have a scratch on your neck? Like a cut?” Portnoy, 47, was asked by Brianna LaPaglia on an episode of The BFFs Pod. “Yeah, you’re the first person to ask,” he replied.
“Is that stitches?” LaPaglia went on to ask. Portnoy then revealed: “Yeah, cancer. I beat it, though.”
When LaPaglia asked if it was “skin cancer from laying in the sun all day” without sunscreen, Portnoy replied, “Yup, that’s why I didn’t go to the Celtics game.”
“It was actually cancer?” LaPaglia pressed, as another host offered condolences for the “scary” situation.
“It’s not scary. I mean, it is, but it’s not. I add it to my list. I’ve had a heart attack, cancer, and stung by bees — beat it all,” Portnoy added, saying that it was “tough to complain” because he often lays out in the sun.
The Barstool Sports founder then explained that he had a mole and “went to a doctor, did a skin thing, and they scrape it, and one of them came back as cancerous.”
Portnoy said he now has around 10 or 12 stitches on his neck, but did not go into detail as to what sort of treatment or procedure he underwent.
“There’s really obviously serious cancer. Mine wasn’t. But I have the right to say I am a cancer survivor now,” he added.
Portnoy went on to clarify on his X account that he “did have cancer,” but he “beat it,” adding that “it wasn’t the serious kind thank God.”
Posts on his social media also show the founder with a large bandage on his neck covering up the stitches.
Portnoy also confirmed the news of his diagnosis on The Dozen Trivia show, presented by Barstool Sports, casually dropping it into conversation.
“A lot of pressure. This is all that matters. We’ve been waiting for all season,” Portnoy said before revealing: “I have cancer, by the way. No big deal.”
Portnoy, who has an estimated net worth of $100 million as of last year, re-acquired his multimillion-dollar sports media company for $1 in 2023 from Penn Entertainment after initially selling it for about $500 million.
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States, with around 6.1 million adults being treated each year for basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC says that most cases of skin cancer are caused by overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun, tanning beds or sunlamps.
