In an interview with The Daily Mail, Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood recalled his recent battle with cancer after receiving a diagnosis of lung cancer around three months ago.

“I’ve had a fight with a touch of lung cancer,” Wood revealed. “There was a week when everything hung in the balance and it could have been curtains—time to say goodbye. You never know what is going to happen.”

Wood said the diagnosis came during a pre-tour checkup, which is required for all members of the band. The guitarist told his doctor to “go deeper” and do extensive checks on his heart and lungs before discovering he had “this supernova burning away on my left lung.”

“And to be totally honest, I wasn’t surprised,” Wood said. “I knew I hadn’t had a chest x-ray since I went to Cottonwood in 2002.”

Wood underwent a week of tests to figure out the extent of the cancer, with the guitarist saying if the cancer had spread, he wouldn’t have opted for chemo. “I wasn’t gong to use that bayonet on my body.”

The cancer didn’t spread and Wood underwent surgery to remove the tumor. He now gets regularly checked every three months. “I was bloody lucky but then I’ve always had a very strong guardian angel looking out for me. By rights I shouldn’t be here.”