Video: Tom Hunting Rejoins Exodus on Stage After Beating Cancer

“He took cancer and kicked it right in the fuckin’ face,” shouted Exodus frontman Steve “Zetro” Souza during their set last night (Thursday, October 7), before welcoming drummer Tom Hunting back to the stage.

The band’s performance at the Aftershock festival in Sacramento, CA was Hunting’s first since he was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma, a form of cancer, earlier this year. The drummer recently underwent a full gastrectomy — the complete surgical removal of his entire stomach — as part of his treatment.

In September, Hunting sat in with Hellhunter for an Exodus cover. But last night marked his return to Exodus, and for a full set, no less. It’ll unfortunately be his last for a little while, as the band’s planned tour with fellow Bay Area thrashers Testament and Death Angel has been pushed back to 2022 (save one gig on November 27 on their home turf).

You can have a look at footage below of Zetro’s welcome back monologue as well as the song that followed. Welcome back, Tom!