After being diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2015, composer and former Entertainment Tonight host John Tesh was told he had only 18 months to live, Tesh reveals in his memoir, Relentless: Unleashing a Life of Purpose, Grit, and Faith, reports the New York Post.

“I was numb, and everyone else around me was really upset and crying, so I thought I was going to have to ‘man up,’” 67-year-old Tesh told the Post. “But I did the wrong thing. I basically spoke death over myself…. So I became a cancer patient.”

Tesh said he made plans for his stepson to replace him at his radio show. He spoke every day with his business manager about insurance and funeral plots, and he drank all the time. But it was his wife of 28 years, actress Connie Selleca, who helped him through this difficult time.

The couple did research and began reading a lot of books. “Unless you have someone really helping you like I did, you’re ready to strap on the kettle bell and jump in the pool because you can’t get to the other side of it.”

The same year he was diagnosed, Tesh underwent surgery, which was followed by chemotherapy and radiation. Although his cancer had gone away, it returned in 2017, and he was treated again.

In 2018, when Tesh had his blood tested to check the status of his cancer, all his tumor markers were clear. In that moment, he believed that the “practice of manifesting divine healing” in his life was real.

“We don’t attend church on Sundays anymore,” he said. “We go to sub-acute nursing facilities to lay hands on the sick, and we’ve had some amazing results in teaching people how not to speak death over themselves.” During a recent reunion with his Entertainment Tonight cohost Mary Hart, Tesh said his faith helped him “become relentless.”

Tesh also believes he manifested his cancer. The disease was something he had worried about his whole life. (Tesh’s father died of cancer.)

When writing Rentlentless, Tesh wanted to include his cancer journey to be of service of others.

“When I was diagnosed, there were very few books out there or other stories of a similar type of cancer,” Tesh said. “So that’s one of the reasons I went through all the details [in the book], but also to show the love story between me and Connie.”

Rentlentless is currently available on Amazon. To purchase it, click here.

For related coverage, read “10 Famous Men Who Prove There’s Life After Prostate Cancer.”