Gerry Turner has hope for his future after being diagnosed with an incurable cancer.
Turner, 73, shared a health update during the Tuesday, April 15, episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast, saying, “I feel great. Until I have any symptoms, there’s no treatment. So I go frequently for blood tests.”
The Golden Bachelor alum noted that he got more hope after a recent appointment.
“I’m on a six-month schedule now, and I feel optimistic because the doctor has said, ‘Well, when you turn 75, we’re going to have to do three-month increments,’” he revealed. “So it’s telling me that at least he expects me to live another couple of years to get to that. But the bottom line is I feel really good.”
While reflecting on his surprise diagnosis, Turner explained that he was grateful for the time he has left, adding, “It’s a privilege to live like you’re dying. I don’t turn down anything. I feel like I’m more open to emotions. I’m more open to experiences.”
Gerry Turner ABC/Brian Bowen Smith
The shift in perspective has also affected his personal life.
“The person I’m dating will say, ‘Do you want to go do …’ And before she even gets out the rest of the sentence, I will say yes. So I’m in on everything,” he continued. “And it makes life exciting because you kind of in the back of your head feel like you’ve got a lot of living to do and you don’t know how long you have to do it, so don’t turn down anything. And so, in a way, it’s really a good thing.”
Turner confirmed in December 2024 that he has Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia, which is a disease that changes white blood cells into cancer cells and builds up in the bone marrow. At the time, he offered new insight into his three-month marriage to his Golden Bachelor winner, Theresa Nist, while opening up about the diagnosis.
“When you are hit with that kind of news and the shock wears off after a few days or a few weeks and you regroup and you realize what’s important to you, that’s where you start to move forward,” he told People. “And I hope that people understand in retrospect now that that had a huge bearing on my decisions and I think probably Theresa’s as well.”
The reality star confirmed he found out about the diagnosis while he was still married to Gist — but they had other issues that contributed to their subsequent split.
“If that was something on his part, maybe, I don’t know. But no, that didn’t factor into ending the relationship,” Nist, 71, told People at the time. “Part of it was the distance, but that wasn’t the only part. That’s really all I will say.”
Theresa Nist and Gerry Turner Disney/John Fleenor
She continued: “[Four weeks is a] very short span of time to get to know someone, and it’s a very accelerated pace. During that four weeks, it’s not that you’re with that person every day anyway. There were only certain times that I was with him one-on-one.”
Turner and Nist fell in love on screen and got married in early 2024 but 90 days later they filed for divorce. Nist issued a public message to Turner after he went public with his cancer battle.
“I wish him the best and that I know that he was in a very difficult situation and that good things will come to him,” she concluded. “And I wish for him a long and healthy, prosperous life, and I hope that he finds his person. I want him to be so happy, and I just wish him all the best of everything in the world.”
