Lung cancer sufferer Dolph Lundgren won Cigar Smoker of the Year award in 2019 trends now
Rocky IV star Dolph Lundgren received a lifetime achievement prize at the Cigar Smokers of the Year Awards in 2019 and appeared on the red carpet with a stogie in-hand - four years after he was diagnosed with the disease.
The 65-year-old Swedish actor opened up about his cancer battle for the first time earlier this week during an appearance on In Depth with Graham Besinger, during which he admitted that his illness may be related to his use of steroids in the 80s and 90s.
He made no mention however of his fondness for cigars, something that he proudly showed off during the 2019 event in London, where he was pictured posing on the red carpet with a cigar and where he was presented with the lifetime achievement award by Queen Camilla's son Tom Parker Bowles.
During his acceptance speech, Lundgren recalled smoking a cigar at Rock IV co-star Sylvester Stallone's house months earlier - while in a subsequent interview with Cigar Aficionado Magazine, he opened up about being taught to smoke cigars by his 'sophisticated' father during his upbringing in Sweden.
Rocky IV star Dolph Lundgren accepted a lifetime achievement prize at the Cigar Smoker of the Year Awards in 2019, four years after his cancer diagnosis, DailyMail.com can reveal
The 65-year-old actor announced earlier this week that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer in 2015, admitting that he feared his past steroid use was to blame
He added that he would often find himself smoking cigars on film sets because there was 'nothing else to do', adding that his two daughters loved the smell of cigars because it reminded them of him.
'If I’m on a film set, I smoke more because there’s just nothing to do', he said, adding his favored brand was Cubans, which he began smoking in 1994, when he married jewelry designer Anette Qviberg, whom he later divorced, mother of his daughters Ida, 27, and Greta, 22.
Lundgren added that he would regularly spark up a cigar while filming The Expendables alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester, noting that it was 'kind of pleasant to smoke a cigar together'.
'I smoked a lot for a while, especially in Montreal where I did a lot of movies and you get a lot of good cigars. I think I smoked four cigars a day. Small ones,' he went on.
As for his smoking routine at home in LA, the actor said there was nothing he loved more than finishing off his evening 'ritual' with a cigar, explaining that while his diet had changed as he got older, a smoke was something he continued to enjoy.
'The classic steak, a New York strip, with a baked potato and a really good wine. And then a brandy or a sambuca. Fernet-Branca is my favorite,' he said. 'It’s all part of a ritual and the cigar finishes it up quite nicely. For a while I smoked Romeo and Julieta Churchills. It’s a special occasion cigar.
'As you get older, your vices kind of go out the window. You can’t eat as much, you can’t drink as much. A cigar is one of those things you can do as you age.'
One year later - in 2020 - Lundgren appeared on another red carpet, this time at the Cana Dorada Film & Music Festival in the Dominican Republic, once again with a cigar in hand.
While discussing his diagnosis earlier this week, Lundgren (seen in Rocky IV with Sylvester Stallone) said he feared his past steroid usage was to blame
The actor - seen at an event in January 2020 with a cigar in hand - has been regularly smoking cigars for years, a habit that was passed down to him by his 'sophisticated' father
During an appearance on In Depth with Graham Besinger this week, Lundgrens's daughter Ida (right) recalled the 'horrible' moment her father told her about his diagnosis
According to the CDC, those who regularly smoke cigars are at 'an increased risk for cancers of the lung, esophagus, larynx and oral cavity,' as well as other conditions like gum disease, tooth loss, and heart disease.
In 2001, the FTC implemented mandated health warnings on cigar packaging, which included labels like, 'Cigar Smoking Can Cause Lung Cancer And Heart Disease.'
Lundgren first revealed to the world that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer in an interview this week during an interview with broadcaster Graham Basinger.
During the chat, the actor speculated that his diagnosis - which first came in 2015, before he briefly went into remission - may have been the result of his steroid usage in the 80s and 90s.
'I tried steroids back in
