'Zoolander' Star Ben Stiller Announces He Had Emergency Surgery to Treat Prostate Cancer

Hollywood funnyman Ben Stiller has revealed he battled an aggressive case of prostate cancer two years ago at age 48.

The “Zoolander” star told Howard Stern Tuesday that he had the gland removed after doctors discovered it was cancerous through a prostate-specific antigen test, a screening examination performed on blood samples.

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“At first, I didn’t know what was gonna happen,” Stiller said. “I was scared. It just stopped everything in your life because you can’t plan for a movie because you don’t know what’s gonna happen.”

The performer said he decided to divulge his illness to encourage other men to be screened.

“I feel like the test saved my life,” he said. “It’s the second-most deadly cancer, but it’s about one of the most curable.”

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He broke the news to his children, Ella, 14, and Quinlin, 11. “I told them I had something I had to deal with,” he said. “They were pretty cool about it.”

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