Singer Yoo Yeol shared his heartfelt gratitude for regaining his health after battling a rare disease on ‘You Quiz on the Block’.
On the May 13th episode of tvN’s ‘You Quiz on the Block’, singer Yoo Yeol appeared to discuss his seven-year struggle with pulmonary fibrosis. After being away from the spotlight for some time, he was last seen by the public in 2023 singing at a church. At the time, he looked incredibly frail; because the act of breathing itself required so much energy due to the pulmonary fibrosis, his weight had dropped to 41kg.
After being diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in 2019, he suffered from acute pneumonia and high fevers. In 2024, he was rushed to the emergency room and remained hospitalized for six months.
When Yoo Jae Suk asked about discussions regarding life-sustaining treatment, Yoo Yeol revealed that his wife kept the details from him, asking to make the decision first before informing him. He shared that she hid her tears and cried in private. While doctors recommended an organ transplant, he faced the heartbreak of two failed attempts. During the second failure, his mother passed away, and he was so physically depleted that a close acquaintance had to handle the funeral arrangements on his behalf, leading him to lose his will to live.
After experiencing cardiac arrest and feeling as though he was on the threshold of life and death, he wrote final messages to his wife and children.
Fortunately, he was given another chance at a transplant and regained his health. Yoo Yeol tearfully recalled the words of the father who donated his daughter’s organs: “I hope the person who received my daughter’s organs stays healthy.” Deeply moved, he expressed his desire to live a life that honors those words, barely holding back tears as he thanked the woman and her father.
