Hall of Fame basketball star Dwyane Wade has revealed he had a cancerous tumor removed from his kidney. He shared the news on his The Why with Dwayne Wade podcast on Thursday. This is the first time he’s publicly talked about it.

In the episode, Dwayne revealed that he had 40% of his right kidney removed 13 months ago. The diagnosis came after years of him putting off going to the doctor for a physical. Inspired by his father Dwyane Wade Sr.’s own journey with prostate cancer, Dwayne visited the doctor and shared that he had been having stomach issues and cramps and that he was urinating slowly.

He shared that through the experience he learned the true meaning of family. “I had a personal decision to make, and what it was was, ‘If this is cancerous if this tumor, this cyst is cancerous, on your kidney, you’re 41 years old, you probably need surgery because it’s something that needs to be removed so it doesn’t spread,’” Wade said.

Showing his vulnerability was another lesson Wade learned in the process! He said, “As a man, you never want your family to see you weak. Don’t want to be perceived weak, don’t want to be seen in your weakest moments but I had to. I saw everybody show up for me and be there for me and in that process. In my weakness, I found strength in my family, in my friends, in my group.”