Actor Choi Sung-won. [Yonhap]
Actor Choi Sung-won. [Yonhap]

Actor Choi Sung-won broke down in tears while recounting his two bouts with leukemia, speaking candidly about the sudden illness that struck at the peak of his career, the pain of a relapse and the lingering aftereffects he continues to live with today.

Choi, along with close friends Park Hae-su, Im Cheol-su and Park Jae-yun — all friends of 20 years — will appear on the KBS 2TV program "Happy Together — Better Together" airing Friday.

A preview clip released recently shows Choi growing visibly emotional as he recalls his time fighting leukemia.

When host Jang Hang-jun gently raised the news reports of Choi's illness at the height of his career, Choi said, "I got sick in 2016, and then it came back. It was incredibly hard" — adding that the memories are ones "I'd rather not revisit."

Im Cheol-su, one of the close friends who stood by him through that period, said, "I was seriously shocked. I cried a lot walking home that day." Park Hae-su said he held onto the belief that Choi would "recover even better and healthier."

Choi rose to public prominence through the hit 2015 tvN drama series "Reply 1988," playing Sung No-eul, the younger brother of Bora (played by Ryu Hye-young) and Deok-seon (played by Hyeri). The following year, however, he was diagnosed with acute leukemia and was forced to halt his activities.

He completed treatment and made a comeback in 2018, but leukemia returned in 2020, bringing another ordeal. After undergoing a bone marrow transplant and roughly two years of treatment, he was declared fully recovered.

Even after his recovery, the aftereffects have persisted. On a past entertainment program, Choi said his condition "goes back and forth between good and bad," adding, "I had the transplant for a fundamental cure, but side effects and aftereffects are unavoidable."

He went on to describe his symptoms: "The first thing is dryness. My nails split as they grow, my eyes and mouth are constantly dry, and I get a little short of breath."

The cast of the tvN drama series "Reply 1988," which aired to wide popularity in 2015. Actor Choi Sung-won is at the far right in the front row. [tvN website]
The cast of the tvN drama series "Reply 1988," which aired to wide popularity in 2015. Actor Choi Sung-won is at the far right in the front row. [tvN website]

What is acute leukemia, the disease Choi Sung-won was diagnosed with?

Leukemia is a blood cancer in which abnormal white blood cells multiply uncontrollably, disrupting the production of normal white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets. It is classified as either acute or chronic depending on how quickly it progresses, with acute leukemia characterized by a rapid worsening of symptoms.

The exact cause of the acute leukemia Choi was diagnosed with in 2016 has not been clearly established. Viral infections, radiation exposure and certain environmental factors are among the risk factors cited by researchers.

Acute leukemia can present with a range of symptoms including fatigue, weight loss and nosebleeds. Experts caution that these can be confused with other conditions such as anemia.

Hwang Do-yu, a professor of hematology and oncology at International St. Mary's Hospital, said that as leukemia cells increase in the bone marrow, normal blood cells decrease, which can cause dizziness, shortness of breath, headaches and fatigue — symptoms that can be mistaken for ordinary anemia.

Hwang added that patients may experience frequent nosebleeds or gum bleeding, difficulty stopping bleeding, easy bruising and hemorrhagic spots on the skin. "A drop in white blood cells weakens immunity, which can trigger cold-like symptoms and may lead to pneumonia or enteritis," he said.

Choi himself noticed something was wrong after a minor bruise he sustained during drama filming took longer than usual to heal. He visited a hospital and received his acute leukemia diagnosis.

Unlike solid tumors, acute leukemia affects the entire body through the bloodstream and is therefore not staged in the conventional sense of stages 1 through 4. Instead, doctors assess each patient's risk of relapse and genetic test results to determine the intensity and frequency of chemotherapy and whether a hematopoietic stem cell transplant is needed.

"Many patients have weakened immune systems even after discharge, so strict hygiene management is essential," Hwang said. "It is important to avoid crowded places as much as possible, maintain thorough hand hygiene and ensure a balanced diet."


betterj@heraldcorp.com