Megadeth bassist David Ellefson said the band was choosing to stay positive about Dave Mustaine’s throat cancer diagnosis.

Following Mustaine’s announcement, the band canceled the majority of their scheduled appearances. Fortunately, Ellefson said the illness hadn’t progressed “beyond a point of repair.”

“At this point, we’re optimistic about the treatments,” he told The Classic Metal Show. “Other cases have shown that … throat cancer is treatable. It’s at a place where it’s certainly, I don’t think, beyond a point of repair. So I think it’s good, and that’s why I think shutting down right now, at least the touring side of it, is good, because I think if we tried to continue to go out and force Dave to sing and perform, yeah, that may not have such a good outcome.”

Read the full story on Ultimate Classic Rock.