Justin Moore Says He Had a Health Scare Due to Build Up of Fat on His Neck: ‘We Didn’t Know if It Was Cancer’

Kimberlee SpeakmanThu, August 20, 2026 at 2:16 PM UTC

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Justin Moore on the ‘TL’s Road House’ podcast and at the 2023 iHeartCountry FestivalCredit: Tracy Lawrence - TL's Road House/YouTube; Dave Pedley/Getty -

Justin Moore revealed during a recent podcast appearance that he had initially feared that the build up of on his neck was cancerous

The country star was sent for an MRI, and doctors have advised him against surgery due to risks to his singing and talking voice

Moore also opened up about other health issues on the podcast, including his reliance on alcohol, revealing that he had entered rehab earlier this year

Country singer Justin Moore is opening up about a cancer scare.

While appearing on Tracy Lawrence’s TL’s Road House podcast released on Wednesday, Aug, 19, the “Small Town USA” singer, 42, spoke about his health— including a build up of fat around his neck that he went to get checked out.

“I’ve had some health issues. Nothing life-threatening, thankfully. I’ve got a — I don’t know if you can see this on my neck, I’m sure people think, ‘Golly, he’s been eatin’ good,’ ” Moore said while showing the underside of his neck.

“We thought it was called a lipoma,” he explained. (A lipoma is a slow-growing, non-cancerous lump made of fat cells that forms just beneath the skin, according to Cleveland Clinic.)

“Like a fatty cyst?” host Tracy Lawrence asked.

“It’s just fat. It’s benign, thank God,” Moore replied.

He said doctors told the country singer that they could surgically remove it if he wanted but that it would be “very, very difficult to do surgery” and it could possibly affect his “singing” and “speaking voice.”

“My wife and I were walking out of the hospital when I had an MRI or something and they had told us, ‘Man, great news. It’s benign, but there’s really not anything we can do about it,’” he recalled.

“So, I was kind of bummed out walking out of the hospital, ‘cause at the time we didn’t know if it was cancer. We didn’t know what it was, you know, and of course your mind takes you to the worst possible places obviously,” he added.

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He conceded that he could “get some more opinions,” but it ultimately “doesn’t affect me,” saying, “I just look like a linebacker circa 1982, you know [with a] thick neck?”

Justin Moore on the ‘TL’s Road House’ podcastCredit: Tracy Lawrence - TL's Road House/YouTube

He said his wife Kate, whom he wed in 2007 and shares kids Ella, 16, Kennedy, 14, and Rebecca, 12, and South, 9, with, also didn’t mind it.

“My wife looked at me, she goes, ‘If you just have a fat neck and you’re here for the next 50 years, then shut up and stop complaining, and I’m like, ‘Yeah,’ he said, before joking with a laugh, “I’ve never sold records because of my looks in the first place.”

The “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away” singer has been open about his health struggles in the past. In June, he announced he was taking time off from touring to focus on his health and go to rehab after his “drinking got out of control.”

Justin Moore onstage in April 2026Credit: Jason Kempin/Getty

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“It started affecting my life,” Moore shared on the TL’s Road House podcast. “I just kind of looked at myself in the mirror ... I was putting so much energy into drinking and all that kind of stuff that it was taking away not only my professionalism but my family, most importantly church.”

He said one Sunday after church, he walked up to his wife and decided “I got to get help” — and decided to treat rehab like a “business trip.” Since then, he’s been 65 days sober.

“I don’t even know what prompted it. I just thought, ‘Man, I want to get healthy,’ ” he said. “I feel like myself for the first time in a while. I’m actually proud of myself for the first time in a while.”

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”