Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson recently revealed on the AXS TV series The Big Interview with Dan Rather that he’s “suffering from an incurable lung disease,” adding, “My days are numbered.”  But the 72-year-old rocker says we shouldn’t write his obituary just yet.

In a statement published by Rolling Stone, Anderson clarifies, “Thanks for your concern but no worries about my diagnosed COPD [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease] and asthma. I have had 14 months with no infections and no bronchitis, so last year was the first since my twenties when I didn’t get sick at all. The conditions I have are early-stage and I plan to keep them that way.”

Regarding his pronouncement that his “days are numbered,” Anderson says he was referring to his days as a singer, noting, “After all, I am 73 years old this August! But I should be O.K. for a few more years if COVID doesn’t get me first.”

On that note, Anderson told Rolling Stone last month that because of his condition, he’s been wearing a mask while traveling for four years, and says that social distancing is now “a way of life” for him.

Anderson closed his statement by saying, “A mild COPD or asthma are just things to live with for the millions around the world who suffer. But no impact at all on my daily life as long as I don’t catch a cold or flu virus and suffer the subsequent heavy bronchitis which, for me, historically follows since I was a young man.”

He then ended with a joke: “On the upside I don’t suffer from hemorrhoids or erectile dysfunction. So, things are looking up, not down. (Puns fully intended).”

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