When it comes to fending off cancer, actor Colin Egglesfield truly believes the third time’s the charm. The “All My Children” alum, who also starred in Hallmark’s “Autumn Dreams,” is hopeful about his future after beating cancer for a third time.
Six months after undergoing surgery to have his prostate removed, Egglesfield, 52, told People on July 8, 2025, that while there have been times when dealing with cancer again felt “overwhelming,” he has been committed to staying “intentional” throughout his healing journey about envisioning himself feeling healthy and strong.
Egglesfield has also opened up in recent weeks about what his treatment has entailed, hoping that sharing candid truths about his journey might inspire other men to get checked and other patients to feel less alone.
Colin Egglesfield Says He Didn’t Know Who to Ask Sensitive Questions About His Healing Journey
Egglesfield fought testicular cancer in 2006, only to have it return a year later, requiring additional treatment. However, he didn’t share either diagnosis publicly until writing his 2019 book, “Agile Artist: Life Lessons From Hollywood and Beyond.”
In 2023, Egglesfield was also diagnosed with prostate cancer. He told People on July 8 that, after losing both of his parents to cancer, he wanted to do whatever he could to keep the cancer from recurring again. Research said removing his prostate was the best answer.
“I just didn’t want to wake up every day wondering if it was going to spread again,” he said. “Having been in that situation when I was younger, feeling like that ticking time bomb, I just didn’t want to have to worry about this for the rest of my life, living for the next 30 years with this hanging over my head.”
The days after surgery were no walk in the park, Egglesfield admitted, telling People, “They were painful. I mean, they make five incisions in your stomach, so every little cough and sneeze feels like you want to just hold your stomach so your guts don’t fly out.”
In addition, Egglesfield shared on the Hearts of Stars podcast in late June that losing his prostate required some “replumbing,” in which his urethra had to be reconnected to the bladder.
“You have to learn how to control it,” Egglesfield said, noting that he learned to do Kegel exercises, attended five weeks of physical therapy, and even had to take Viagra daily to get everything functioning again.
“You know, this is not always a comfortable conversation,” Egglesfield said on the “Hearts of Stars” podcast, “but the reason why I do it is because a lot of people, a lot of guys, have reached out to me on social media asking me these questions. And when I got diagnosed with this … I wanted to know this stuff, and I didn’t know who to ask.”
Colin Egglesfield Hopes That Sharing His Story Will Keep People From Waiting Too Long for Screening
Having battled cancer three times, Egglesfield feels grateful he’s still around to tell the tales of his journeys through treatment. But he says that’s because each time, his cancer was detected early enough to give him a fighting chance. Waiting too long, he said, can have very different outcomes.
On the “Hearts of Stars” podcast, he told the story of a relative who waited too long to have a mole on his chest checked out.
“It was growing and didn’t get better,” Egglesfield said, “and he was one of these stubborn guys that just … didn’t go get it checked out, and finally, it metastasized to the point where it spread all over his body. And within a year, he was gone, passed away.”
He continued, “This stuff is serious and I think guys sometimes, and maybe some gals, just think that if they ignore it, it’ll go away.”
Egglesfield said on the podcast that at his six-month check-up in June, his tests showed he was “cancer-free — no signs of any of the cancer cells or anything spreading, so I’m healthy and so that gives me peace of mind, knowing that I’m going to be fine.”
Egglesfield will continue to have regular screenings, but one of his physicians, Dr. Alan Bryce — chief clinical officer at City of Hope in Phoenix — told People, “His prognosis is excellent. We expect he’s been cured. We know cancer can come back, but the odds are very, very good.”
The rest of 2025 looks very busy for Egglesfield, in lots of positive ways. In late July, he’ll appear with fellow Hallmark actors and alums — including Kristoffer Polaha, Taylor Cole, and Michael Rady — at the first Christmas in a Small Town fan convention. In the fall, he’ll appear in the feature film “Where the Wind Blows.”
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Colin Egglesfield Bravely Shares Details of Facing 3rd Cancer Diagnosis: ‘This Stuff is Serious’