Pauly Shore didn’t have symptoms. No pain, no weight loss, no red flags. Just a gut instinct, and at 57, he followed it. That decision might have saved his life.
In a candid Instagram post, the actor and comedian revealed he recently underwent surgery to remove a tumor from his pancreas. It was benign, but the discovery rattled him. “Mentally, it really messed with me,” Shore admitted. “Could it grow? Burst? Turn into something worse? You just don’t know.”
A Preventive Move With Major Payoff
Three months ago, Shore booked a full-body scan at SimonMed in Las Vegas—a precautionary move he said felt right for his age. The scan checks for everything from tumors and aneurysms to Alzheimer’s. A week later, doctors called: something showed up in his abdominal region. It turned out to be a noncancerous tumor nestled inside his pancreas, potentially growing there unnoticed for 15 to 20 years.
Even though it wasn’t an emergency, surgeons strongly recommended removing it.
“I’ve always been on top of my health,” Shore said. “Gym, sauna, bloodwork, colonoscopies… but I’d never done a full-body scan.”
Surgery and the Hard Road Back
Shore underwent the operation on Aug 21 at Cedars-Sinai under Dr. Nicholas Nissen. He documented the experience in a raw, emotional video from his hospital bed, calling the tumor “a devil that’s in me” before going in. The footage cuts to five days later—Shore recovering, emotional, and brutally honest about how hard it hit him.
“You never know what the f— is inside your body,” he said through tears. “It’s been tough. The aftermath of abdominal surgery is pretty f—ing hard.”
Now home and on the mend, he says he’s healing every day, managing the pain, and grateful he caught it before it became something worse.
Should You Get a Full-Body Scan?
Full-body imaging isn’t part of standard checkups, but it’s becoming more common among men over 40 looking to catch hidden health issues before they become dangerous. Clinics like SimonMed and others in the longevity space (including Cenegenics and Prenuvo) are seeing a surge in interest.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, these scans can detect abnormalities early, but they’re not always covered by insurance and can come with a risk of false positives. Experts recommend talking to your physician before scheduling one.
Key Takeaways From Pauly Shore’s Health Scare
- He had no symptoms. The tumor was only discovered through a full-body scan.
- It was benign. But doctors still advised surgery due to long-term risk.
- Surgery was successful. Shore is home, recovering, and sharing his story.
- He stayed proactive. Shore’s regular health habits didn’t catch the tumor, but his instinct to go further did.
- He encourages others to act. “You never know what the f— is inside your body,” he said.
For men in midlife, Shore’s story is more than a celebrity health update. It’s a powerful reminder to take your health seriously, even when you feel fine.
