Dan Bongino’s Cancer Journey

American conservative political commentator and former Secret Service agent, Dan Bongino, announced in 2020 that he had been diagnosed with cancer. After undergoing treatment, he was officially declared cancer-free a year later in 2021.

Daniel John Bongino began his career as part of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) as a police officer, after which he served as an agent for the US Secret Service. In 2025, he was appointed by US President Donald Trump as the deputy director of the FBI, before he eventually left his post in 2026.

Bongino also ran for Congress thrice, although he was unsuccessful in all of his attempts. After abandoning his political aspirations, Bongino shifted his focus to the media, starting his own podcast The Renegade Republican. He went on to host Unfiltered with Dan Bongino on Fox News and appeared on many other programs, speaking about politics and cultural issues from the perspective of a conservative.

In 2020, Bongino discovered a lump on his neck which prompted him to seek medical attention. He had the lump surgically removed and a subsequent biopsy led to a diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a type of blood cancer that begins in the lymphocytes (white blood cells) of the body. Fortunately, prognosis is typically positive, with a high 5-year relative survival rate of 89%.

“Unfortunately, it is cancer. It's lymphoma, the Hodgkin's type. But it is treatable,” he shared on his radio show, the Bongino Report.

Despite being diagnosed with cancer, Bongino remained positive. He shared, “I have nothing to be depressed about. There's a treatment plan. Everybody's got their obstacles; this is just another one for me and [my wife]. I do have cancer, and that is hard for me to say."

Bongino underwent chemotherapy to treat his cancer. He shared that it was not easy as he “could not go to sleep because of these damn chemo hiccups”. However, he was thankful to have his wife by his side taking care of him.

“My wife, I was like a child, she would be patting my back like she was burping a child and we would be up to two or three in the morning. She would be like, ‘I can’t watch you go through this,'” he recalled.

Fortunately, in Mar 2021, Bongino’s cancer went into remission.

Bongino shared that being diagnosed with cancer changed his perspective on life. “I was given the gift by God of finding out that we all have an expiration date. Every minute of your life is a gift,” he reflected.

Following his recovery, Bongino is now living his life to the fullest. He celebrated his 20th wedding anniversary with his wife, Andrea (Martinez) Bongino, in 2023. He has also relaunched his show, the Dan Bongino Show, in February 2026, after stepping down as deputy director of the FBI.