Dave Mustaine's New Memoir: 'In My Darkest Hour' to Chronicle Cancer Battle and Musical Resilience

In In My Darkest Hour: A Memoir, due September 8th, Dave Mustaine, the thrash-metal icon and founder of Megadeth in 1983, will reflect on the most challenging periods of his life. The book, co-written with author Joe Layden, delves into his battle with cancer in the past decade.

In 2019, Mustaine was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma at the back of his tongue. The book chronicles how he responded to the diagnosis with a renewed commitment to music, despite having survived alcoholism and drug addiction—previously detailed in his 2010 book, Mustaine: A Life in Metal (also co-written with Layden), and Rust in Peace, which focused on the making of Megadeth’s iconic album. It reveals how Mustaine navigated chemo and radiation while recording Megadeth’s 16th album, The Sick, the Dying … and the Dead!, released in 2022. The book explores his inner struggles with mortality and his reliance on family and faith.
In My Darkest Hour Cover

"One of the most harrowing experiences of my adult life has been my seven-year journey through cancer treatment and onward into remission," Mustaine stated. "This story is considerably more than just, ‘Go to the doctor, get diagnosed, get treatment and hopefully I live happily ever after.’ This was a journey of me saving myself, staying alive, keeping my family together, and continuing to make music through it all."

Now six years post-diagnosis, Mustaine remains resolute. Megadeth released their 17th album, Megadeth, in January, which debuted at Number One on the Billboard 200. The album includes Megadeth’s cover of Metallica’s “Ride the Lightning,” a song Mustaine co-wrote, and the single “I Don’t Care.”

Mustaine has hinted that this LP might be Megadeth’s last. "After 40 years of delivering Megadeth music, playing shows around the world, I have nothing but gratitude at this moment," he said regarding the Number One debut. "Finding out that our last Megadeth record is also our first Number One only further validates my will to go out on top."

Ben Schafer, executive editor at Da Capo, the book's publisher, said, "In My Darkest Hour is Dave Mustaine at his most revealing, vulnerable, and true. With lacerating honesty and soulful reflection, he speaks to the universal human experience of facing serious illness and how it changes a person, their family and friends, and one’s relationship with creativity."

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