'General Hospital' Star John J. York Reveals Blood and Bone Marrow Disorder Diagnosis

The Marc Scorpio actor said his hiatus from the soap, which he has starred on since 1991, will last an additional 'three, maybe four months.'

By Allison Schonter

General Hospital actor John J. York is opening up about his health battles. After announcing earlier this month that he would be taking a step back from his role as Mac Scorpio on the long-running ABC soap opera, York took to social media Wednesday to reveal that he was recently diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome and Smoldering Multiple Myeloma, blood and bone marrow disorders.

"I said I was going to give you an update on the reason I'm taking a little hiatus from General Hospital and here it is. So last December of '22, I was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndromes, or MDS, and multiple smoldering myeloma – two blood and bone marrow disorder," York revealed in a video message. According to the National Cancer Institute, myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are "a group of cancers in which immature blood cells in the bone marrow do not mature or become healthy blood cells." Multiple smoldering myeloma is a precancerous condition that alters certain proteins in blood and/or increases plasma cells in bone marrow, but it does not cause symptoms of [myeloma] disease.

York explained that over the past several months, he has "had three bone marrow biopsies, many chemo treatments, I have another one coming up in a couple of weeks, and I'm closing in on a blood stem cell transplant." He added that he has "been working with some wonderful people at Be The Match to find a potential donor on their registry." The soap opera star went on to encourage his followers to consider donating to the organization or joining the donor registry, "not just me but thousands and thousands of other people who are in need of a donor."

"I just want to say thanks for all the support over the years. This isn't goodbye, this is just, 'So long.' I'll have to take a break [from General Hospital] for at least three, maybe four months, but I'll be back," York concluded the message. "Thanks a lot. Check out Be the Match. Do whatever you can. Thanks for your patience, thanks for your time, thanks for your prayers. I'll keep you updated. Talk to you soon."

York is best known for his portrayal of Mac Scorpio – estranged brother of Robert Scorpio, husband of Felicia Scorpio-Jones, and the stepfather of Georgie and Maxie Jones – on General Hospital. He joined the long-running soap in 1991 and has gone on to appear in more than 930 episodes. He also reprised the role on the spinoff series Port Charles from 1997 through 2001, an episode of All My Children in 2001, and General Hospital: Night Shift in 2007.

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