DEF LEPPARD's VIVIAN CAMPBELL On Stem-Cell Treatment: I'm Very Much Looking Forward To A Most Successful Outcome

DEF LEPPARD guitarist Vivian Campbell, whose cancer is once again in "remission," has just finished undergoing a new round of chemotherapy before receiving a stem-cell transplant later in the month.

Campbell — who before joining DEF LEPPARD in 1992 was well known for his work with DIO and WHITESNAKE — went public with his Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis last summer, but announced in November that he was in remission.

The term "remission" means that the symptoms of the cancer have either been eliminated or reduced. When the tumor is completely gone, doctors call it "complete remission."

However, Campbell revealed earlier in the year that the cancer had returned and he was battling the disease with a new high-tech chemo treatment.

While Campbell is undergoing stem-cell treatment, he will be unable to join his bandmates as they complete work on their new studio album. The guitarist will also be forced to miss the band's next few live appearances, including the pre-game show at the first of this year's three NFL International Series games on Sunday, September 28, when the Oakland Raiders host the Miami Dolphins; as well as shows in Las Vegas, Santa Ynez, Rancho Mirage and Temecula.

In a brand new message to fans on DEF LEPPARD's official web site, Campbell writes: "As many of you know, I've been scheduled to start a stem cell transplant and as soon as I got home from tour I began the necessary tests and preparations. I'll be admitted to hospital soon for all the yucky bits, so in the meantime I'm headed to Target to stock up on cozy pajamas, fresh underwear, and a sackful of car porn.

"Unfortunately, this means that I won't be able to perform with the band on the upcoming NFL broadcast on September 28th, nor will I be able to do the shows scheduled for October/November.

"While I can't say that I'm looking forward to the process ahead, I'm very much looking forward to what I feel will be a most successful outcome.

"Next year will be very busy for DEF LEPPARD with a new album and a world tour, and frankly, I don't think they would sound as loud without me, so I have no intention of letting the team down!

"See you all (with hair!) in 2015."

Regarding the progress of the recording sessions for DEF LEPPARD's next CD, the band's singer Joe Elliott told Crash Davis of the Omaha, Nebraska radio station KFAB earlier in the month: "We did a little bit of stuff on the road, because, to be quite honest, with Vivian's cancer, even though it's in remission, he's going in for stem-cell surgery in a week or 10 days time, and he's gonna be unavailable and incognito and wrapped up in, you know, basically, the boy in the bubble up to maybe Christmas so he can blitz this thing once and for all, which means that any work that he needs to do on the record, we had to make sure it was done before this happened. So we had him in… On days off [on the road], we had him in a hotel room with his guitar and a microphone ready to do backing vocals and guitar solos and all sorts of mad stuff, so that we could get on with the record when he's in hospital and the tour's finished. So we get back to work on that record this autumn, or fall, as you guys call it, and hopefully we'll have the thing — you know, artwork, titles, running order — all nailed by January. We wanna put the record out by April-May. And we'll start thinking then about where we're gonna go and play. It looks like we may start off on the other side of the world — in, like, Australia, New Zealand and Japan, etc. — and then work our way back through Europe and then come to the States [in] July-August."