In September 2024, Ian Smith was given the devastating news that he had just six months to live.
But March 2025 came and went. And now another year has passed, and Ian’s still going strong, with a groundbreaking treatment giving him more time than he’d hoped for.
In fact, not only is the beloved Neighbours star defying his terminal prognosis, he’s already thinking about his next role and has no plans to stop acting.
“I’m still here… and it’s bloody great to be alive,” he says, speaking to our sister publication Woman’s Day.
When Ian, who turns 87 in June, was diagnosed with pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma — an extremely rare and aggressive form of lung cancer — the diagnosis hit hard.
“That diagnosis knocked me for a six… cancer has upended my life in so many ways,” he shares with the publication.
Ian’s wife, Gail, died of pancreatic cancer in 2019.
“I was given six months to live, meaning I expected to be gone by March 2025, and I was prepared for that,” he admits.
However, he was placed on a course of cutting-edge immunotherapy and remarkably, it appears to have worked.
Ian says his oncologist has confirmed the cancer has stabilised, giving him what he describes as “a year, maybe two” of extra life.
“I’m not cured, but I’m here. And I feel fine,” he says.
Ian has showed remarkable resolve throughout.
When his finale episode aired on Neighbours in April 2025, Ian made a surprise appearance on The Project where he proved his outlook was nothing short of remarkable.
“I was supposed to die in March. I didn’t. So I’m here to talk about me dying last month,” he said with characteristic wit.
“I know I’ve got cancer because doctors keep telling me I have. That’s the only way I know. I’ve got no pain — none of that.”
He described feeling “reborn” following the immunotherapy treatment, and made one thing very clear — he is nowhere near done.
“I want to go forever. I don’t want to play Harold anymore, but I don’t want to stop acting.”
Ian first landed the role of Harold Bishop on Neighbours in 1987, and what was set to be a five-week stint stretched into decades and made him one of the most recognisable faces on Australian television.
Speaking to Woman’s Day at a recent Prisoner reunion event in Melbourne, he was bullish about what comes next.
“I’m feeling in such a great place now, I’d love to get back to work on stage or screen,” he says.
“I am definitely not retired. I’d also love to do some TV commercials.”
“The thing is, actors have to act. It’s not about ego… it’s about that yen to keep playing ‘cowboys and Indians’.”
