Billy Kametz, the LA-based voice actor, was recently diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. Fans of The Rising of the Shield Hero season 2 anime will be familiar with Billy’s work as he is the English dub voice behind Naofumi Iwatani.

Through a recent YouTube video on his channel, Billy appeared and gave a brief update on his current health condition. He had this to say about how things are progressing in his life thus far:

“I’m ok. Once we found out, we have a great team of doctors and specialists who really help me, so I have a good dose of painkillers to help with that.

I started chemotherapy. I actually have my next appointment tomorrow. So we’ll continue with that.

I had some radiation done to parts of my spine. But yes, it sucks. It’s just a freak of nature thing that’s happened that I’m dealing with now.”

But Billy seems optimistic and says the following about his treatment and possible recovery:

“Chemo is going well; I haven’t been too sick. But now things are going well for me. My appetite is gone; I ate a lot and I can walk a lot. I was able to walk about three miles a day.

And I stay very positive, and that’s the biggest reason I want to make this video is to let you know that I have so much support and so much positivity around me.

And so many people who give me strength, that I know I’m going to fight this and come out all right on the other side.”

A versatile person

Billy Kametz’s voice acting career in anime is impressive. He voiced Josuke Higashikata in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable, Mikhail in Sirius the Jaeger, and Seiya Ichijo in Sword Gai, among many others.

And he has also lent his voice acting skills to radio, online and TV advertisements. He has also worked with many well-known brands such as Comcast, iHop and Nintendo.

What now for Billy Kametz?

The talented 35-year-old voice actor will take time off to continue treatment. Due to his condition, he had to retire from the voice acting roles, but he wants fans to support the shows and the voice actors that will replace him.

australia business blog readers who wish to support Billy Kametz can donate to the following: GoFundMe Page† And for those who want to keep up to date with the latest developments in Billy’s life, consider following him on Instagram†

Billy Kametz has brought great joy to anime fans around the world. We sincerely hope that his absence from the anime world will be only temporary and that he will make a speedy recovery.