There are many reasons why so many people wonder what kind of disease or illness Howard Stern has. Firstly, the legendary radio host has built his career around complaining. And a lot of the time, Howard complains about aches and pains, and stresses. Even though the former shock jock is known for getting his celebrity guests, such as Kate Beckinsale, into trouble, he's also known for being utterly honest about what's going on in his life. And this includes his physical and mental health.
Without a doubt, Howard Stern is a bit neurotic about his health. That's because he's a bit neurotic about everything. it's part of his comedic schtick and his millions of fans love him for it... even when they get a bit annoyed by him beating the same dead horse over and over again. But anyone who knows anything about what diseases Howard has struggled with his whole life would know that this is just part and parcel. Here's the truth about all of the illnesses and diseases that Howard has and has had to go through since being a kid.
Howard Stern Had A Cancer Scare
No, Howard Stern did not end up having cancer. But the fact that he had a legitimate scare has been a highly discussed topic. It was one that the radio host spoke about while promoting his book, "Howard Stern Comes Again", in 2019. It was also one that was featured in the book itself. While discussing the scare was something that helped bring attention to his book, it actually had some relevance to its contents.
First of all, his cancer scare was the reason why he missed a day of work in 2017, something that the extremely hard-working New Yorker has almost never done. At the time, he lied to the audience about his whereabouts (another thing he almost never does). But while all of these revelations are interesting, they don't relate to the book about Howard's evolution from a shock jock into one of the best celebrity interviewers of all time as much as the fact that this scare really changed his perspective on life.
While the growth on his kidney turned out not to be cancerous, he still needed the surgery to prove it. Additionally, Howard's longtime co-host, Robin Quivers, had her experience with cancer and nearly lost her life. Howard admitted he was terrified, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Even though Howard was in the process of change, this traumatic moment really helped him complete his personal and creative evolution, much to the chagrin of some of his old-school fans.
Howard's Struggled With Forms Of OCD His Entire Life
Even though Howard claims his therapist says that he doesn't have the clinical diagnosis of being Obsessive-Compulsive, Howard absolutely has OCD tendencies. This is something he claims developed in his early childhood. Unnecessary counting and a need for perfection dominated his life. And, in his later years, it seems as though this issue has persisted.
The OCD tendencies have also triggered a form of germaphobia in Howard. Based on all of his stories from his younger years, it doesn't appear as though his obsession with cleanliness and health were prevalent until later. But now, especially with COVID, Howard is terrified of getting sick. After all, he's barely left his house in two years, doing the show entirely from his basement. But prior to the pandemic, Howard displayed notable germaphobic tendencies, including rigorous cleaning and keeping distance between him and a number of his staffers. While Howard's fear of COVID-19 makes sense, there's no doubt that he's exacerbated his nonsensical cleanliness habits because of it.
Howard's Constantly Having To Change His Diet Due To Minor Factors
Listeners of The Howard Stern Show know that Howard is constantly changing his diet. One day he's drinking coffee, and the next he's banished it from his life due to one doctor's visit. Another day, he's obsessed with eating cucumbers, the next doctors say they've found seeds in his stomach and therefore he must stop. It's hard to keep on top of the changes in his eating habits, but the radio host does a very good job of making his battle with his general health and physical weight funny.
Thanks to things such as high blood pressure or too much Vitamin D, Howard has told his radio audience that he's constantly had to alter what he ingests. So, while we don't know the full story, it's safe to say that Howard's issues are ongoing. However, taking a page out of Howard's book... or, rather, Dr. John Sarno's book, a lot of Howard's issues may be in his head or caused by the stress he puts himself through.
Howard Stern is notorious for quoting Dr. John Sarno whenever any of his staffers or guests complain about back pains. This is because Howard suffered from back pains for years but claims that the late Dr. Sarno's teaching of the mind-body connection solved his issues. While the medical jury appears to still be out on the legitimacy of all of Dr. Sarno's precise findings, there's no doubt that Howard's neurosis and OCD have caused him more problems than he needs or deserves.