Coal Chamber drummer Mikey “Bug” Cox was in the hospital yesterday, July 10th, for what is expected to be his final cancer-related surgery. Cox went public with his cancer battle earlier this year, revealing he had been diagnosed with stage 3 cancer on April 01st, 2025.
He has since undergone radiation and chemo for the disease, as well as surgery. Having recently been given the all clear, this latest round of surgery is expected to be a more corrective measure, aiming to, as he put it, “put the rest of my insides back together.”
In a statement shared yesterday, July 11th, Cox offered:
“BIG DAY!!! My lovely baby mamma and I are at the hospital for what my medical team hopes will be my final cancer surgery.
This has been a long, difficult journey filled with appointments, tests, surgeries, and more uncertainty than I ever imagined. Through it all, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have the love and support of my family, friends, my doctors, and all of you. I can’t thank everyone enough for the encouragement, prayers, and kindness you’ve shown me every step of the way.
I’m beyond grateful for how far we’ve come. I’m alive, I’m getting stronger every day, and today feels like another huge step toward putting this chapter behind me.
I can’t wait to finish recovering, get healthy, and get back where I belong—on stage with @coalchamberofficial . Seeing all of you again is a huge part of what’s kept me motivated through this fight.
Thank you for believing in me. Here’s to healing, recovery, and the road ahead.
FxCK CANCER !!!
Mikey“
The scheduling of this latest procedure forced Coal Chamber to withdraw from their planned appearance at this fall’s ‘Louder Than Life‘ festival.
Update: July 11th, 2026 05:31pm:
Cox has checked in with the below post-surgery update:
“First steps post surgery ! I’m In a ridiculous amount of pain and I have a massive hole in my stomach that will act as a drain and heal itself . They also had to cut my ab muscle and sewed it back together so that is pain every time I breathe but Surgery was a massive success and hopefully the last one . I now have to get my walking ability back and then get into all my PT . If I can get a handle on my neuropathy and joint pain we are looking good . I’ll be ready to go full steam in a few months !
Fxck Cancer”
