Actress Kim Jeong-hwa described her husband Yoo Eun-seong's current condition regarding his battle with brain cancer.
On the afternoon of the 17th, OSEN met actress Kim Jeong-hwa at The Good Theater in Hyehwa-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, and conducted an interview.
Kim Jeong-hwa debuted in 2000 and recorded numerous hits such as New Nonstop, 1% of Something, and Stove League, and she also spread positive influence through consistent sponsorship activities and running social corporations. Recently, she renewed her contract with her agency and returned to the stage after 13 years in the play "Schumann," meeting audiences again.
In particular, Kim Jeong-hwa married CCM singer and composer Yoo Eun-seong in 2013 and has two sons. However, in 2023 Kim Jeong-hwa revealed that her husband Yoo Eun-seong had been diagnosed with brain cancer and was battling the disease, drawing sympathy. Recently, Yoo Eun-seong shared his own test results and delivered hopeful news, and Kim Jeong-hwa was able to share more specific details.
That day Kim Jeong-hwa said, "The first time he was diagnosed with a brain tumor was three years ago. It was found during a health checkup; he had a headache so he was tested, and then they suddenly said to go to a large hospital, so we went. At that time I heard the term 'low-grade glioma,' but it was a disease name I had never heard before, so I didn't really know what it meant. So I frantically searched and asked a doctor I knew," she began.
Kim Jeong-hwa said, "It turned out to be a type of brain tumor, and I was told its location was the frontal lobe, so it wasn't good. For the brain, to do a biopsy you have to open it, but they said the surgery itself is too risky. They said the chance of death is high, and if surgery is done there's a high probability of leaving disabilities. My husband is a musician and could lose hearing in one ear, and there could be problems with memory or bodily functions, so at that time it really felt like the world was collapsing," she recalled her feelings at the time.
Kim Jeong-hwa mentioned that she had relied on her husband after marriage and said, "After getting married I was in a much more stable state. Before marriage I had depression and severe insomnia so I was very unstable, but after getting married I thought, 'now only happy days remain.' But hearing about my husband's illness in that situation felt so bleak," she said, expressing her distress.
She continued, "I cried more than my husband did, and I kept worrying about how to raise the children if he had surgery and how to run the business. I'm not naturally a strong leader, so I think I was more afraid. So at that time I just thought, 'I hope he doesn't have the surgery.'"
Kim Jeong-hwa said, "Fortunately, the test two weeks later said he did not need immediate surgery. I was so grateful for that one sentence that I was really happy at the time. So for now we decided to carefully monitor the situation," and she recalled the conversation, "Going through that changed my thoughts about life a lot. For the first time I felt that living is not something to be taken for granted. At that time my husband said, 'Aren't we all living on borrowed time?'"
She added, "He said nobody knows who will live longer, and something could happen tomorrow, so we should live each day doing our best. After hearing that, each day felt more precious. I hugged the children one more time, expressed myself to my husband one more time, and lived with gratitude," she said.
Kim Jeong-hwa, who said she recently heard good news, said, "When I went back for another test recently, I felt gratitude but also anxiety. I kept thinking 'what if' as I went to the hospital. But the test result was that the size had not changed much, so they said let's check again in five years. The tumor hasn't disappeared, but I was so thankful for that result, and we said, 'let's live the next five years even more earnestly.'"
Kim Jeong-hwa also said, "When you go to hospitals you realize there are many people in really difficult situations. So I feel grateful just for the current condition. I live with the mindset of doing my best each day. The fact that many people have worried and prayed for us has been a great strength," and she added, "I believe in the power of prayer. Even if the disease does not completely heal, I believe there will surely be miracles in other ways."
[Photo] Kenneth Company, Kim Jeong-hwa SNS
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