- - ‘80s Rock Icon Reveals Why He’s Doing Farewell Tour Before Much-Needed Surgery

Victoria MillerDecember 27, 2025 at 9:50 PM

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Photo by CRISTINA QUICLER on Getty Images

Dave Mustaine plans to power through Megadeth’s final tour despite dealing with a painful hand condition that makes it hard to play guitar. In a December 2025 interview with MariskalRock TV, the Megadeth frontman explained why he’s going ahead with the band’s This Was Our Life Tour following the release of their final studio album on January 23.

Mustaine, 64, revealed that he suffers from Dupuytren’s contracture, a painful condition that causes fingers to bend toward the palm of the hand. There is no cure for the condition that will eventually progress to a point that could make guitar playing difficult, if not impossible.

"It's gonna make my finger come down like this,” he shared. "It's already started, where it's kind of bunching up a little bit. And then if you look at the tips of my fingers, they're severely arthritic. So all those bumps makes it really painful to play. …I just said one day to my management, 'You know, I don't know how much longer I'm gonna be able to do this.'”

The rock legend explained that there is a surgery to slow down the progression of the condition, but that he didn’t want to risk not being able to properly say goodbye to fans.

"If I wait until my hands are causing a problem and I try it and it doesn't work, well then I've toured everywhere, I've said farewell everybody and am not leaving stuff unsaid or unfinished,” Mustaine explained.

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Mustaine previously told SiriusXM's Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk that his hand condition was one of the reasons he wanted to embark on a farewell tour now. "It had been a long time coming — just physical stuff that was going on with my hands… My hands were letting me down,” he said, per Blabbermouth.net.

"I always said when it got to the point where I was unable to give a hundred percent every night, that's when I was gonna start considering winding down,” the rocker added. “There was a period when we were working and I said to my manager, 'I don't know how much longer I can do this. My hands are really hurting.' And I didn't mean to set the ball rolling.”

Mustaine revealed that it became “clear" to him that he should embark on “one last really good tour” in support of Megadeth’s 17th and final studio album. “And the part about the farewell thing, it's kind of like the same thing, isn't it?" he added. "We've got some dates that we wanna play to say goodbye to our friends."

Following the release of their self-titled album next month, Megadeth will tour Canada, Europe, and the United States.

Megadeth was formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by Mustaine, guitarist Greg Handevidt, bassist Dave Ellefson, and drummer Richard Girod. More than forty years later, the lineup for the thrash metal band features Mustaine, Teemu Mantysaari, James LoMenzo, and Dirk Verbeuren.

In August, Megadeth teased on Instagram that “the end” was near for the longtime band. They later shared a video with an announcement from their animated skeleton mascot, Vic Rattlehead. “The next Megadeth album will be the last. 40 years of metal forged in steel will end in fire … And when the New Year rises, the global farewell tour,” the mascot announced.

Mustaine told fans he wanted to go out “on top.” “I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans, and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them,” the rock icon in a statement, per Revolver magazine. “If there was ever a perfect time to tour the world, it's now. … We've made a lot of friends over the years, and I hope to see all of you on our global farewell tour.”

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This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”