Kiefer Sutherland has publicly thanked the medics who helped him get back to work on TV drama 24 just six days after he ruptured a cyst on his abdominal wall.
The actor spoke out for the first time about his emergency surgery in February (10) on Monday's (03May10) Ellen show in the U.S. - because he missed an appearance on the program because of his health scare.
Explaining his absence, Sutherland told host Ellen DeGeneres, "I had an adrenal cyst on my abdominal wall...
"About 75 per cent of us have cysts in our bodies and I was doing a scene on 24, where I picked up a dead body, and the weight of that, combined with, apparently my age, ruptured the cyst and it started to bleed into my abdomen... so they had to take it out.
"It all took place pretty quick... They did a phenomenal job and I was back at work six or seven days later."
Shooting on the eighth series of the action drama ground to a halt to allow the actor time out to treat the ruptured cyst near his kidney.
Tagged in Kiefer Sutherland