Ten years ago, Johnny Ruffo won the hearts of Aussies across the country with his personality, good looks and incredible stage presence on X Factor Australia.
Now, he is battling the biggest fight of his life… for the second time.
The former Home And Away star is ready to share his story – the good, bad and the ugly – in a new memoir set to be released on August 30.
The former tradie, a concreter, with a cheeky smile and long-held passion for music eventually placed third before Sony Music rushed to sign him up and he was offered a guest spot on Home And Away, which turned into a three-year role.
But the sudden rise to fame took its toll.
Johnny found it hard to resist the weekend-long parties, drugs, booze and fair-weather friends that came with the territory.
He had started suffering from severe headaches when his girlfriend, Tahnee, noticed something was also wrong with his speech. Johnny was rushed to hospital, where doctors prepped him for immediate surgery to deal with a 7-centimetre-long tumour. He was ultimately diagnosed with a rare brain cancer, with which – despite a period of remission – he still battles today.
But in a strange way Johnny thinks the cancer actually saved his life.
‘No Finish Line’ is available in stores from August 30.
