Dwyane Wade has revealed that he pushed through kidney surgery in order to make sure his family had an enjoyable Christmas in 2023.
The retired NBA star, who had 40 percent of his kidney removed after the formation of a cancerous tumor, spoke about his recovery in a holiday vlog posted on Friday (January 2). Around the nine-minute mark, Wade said that Christmas Day two years ago marked one week after his surgery, but he felt the need to "be strong" for his family.
"I tried to make sure that we had a Christmas even though I was barely walking," the athlete said. "I could barely stand up straight. I was very weak. And so I remember having a moment where I was in my shower upstairs before the family was coming over and I was bending over. I couldn't stand up straight."
Wade added that the "pain was excruciating." "And it's probably the weakest I've ever felt as an adult man where I felt like my body was obviously taking over for me and it was controlling me and I couldn't control it," he continued.
"But I wanted to be strong for my family, and so I mustered up the energy and the courage to come down and try to act like nothing was wrong, even though everybody knew that I just finished having surgery."
The former Miami Heat player said that it wasn't "the greatest time of energy" around his family, although they managed to build "incredible memories" that holiday.
Wade said the "flashback moment" came to him as he was preparing for Christmas Day 2025, and he now feels "physically and mentally stronger" in comparison to two years before. The athlete revealed his diagnosis on podcast The Why with Dwayne Wade in January 2025, where he recounted doctors telling him to have early surgery to combat the cancerous mass.
"My own journey to have that surgery, I think it was the first time that my family, my dad, my kids, they saw me weak,” Wade said on the episode. "That moment was probably the weakest point I’ve ever felt in my life."