US Olympic legend Scott Hamilton explains why he is choosing NOT to treat third brain cancer: 'I'm at peace with not even looking at it again'

US Olympic hero Scott Hamilton has revealed he has chosen not to have surgery to treat a third brain tumor.

The 65-year-old won figure skating gold for the United States at the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo.

Hamilton has already gone under the knife twice to treat brain cancer - first in 2004 and then in 2010. The latter treatment ran into complications and saw him require nine different surgeries.

He was told in 2016 that the tumor had returned for a third time but Hamilton does not want to go through more 'complicated' treatment.

'When they gave me the diagnosis, they said: "It's back", he told People Magazine. 

Scott Hamilton has revealed he has chosen not to have surgery to treat a third brain tumor

'So they brought in this guy, a really young, talented surgeon, and he said: "We could do the surgery again. It'd be complicated, but we've got really talented people here that we could bring in, and I know we could pull it off if that's an option for you".'

Instead, however, Hamilton told medics he would 'go home and get strong' rather than go back in for surgery straight away. 

'It's been remarkable,' he said. 'I went back to the scan three months later and they said, it hasn't grown. I go back three months later and they go, it shrank 45 per cent. I said to my surgeon: "Can you explain this?" And he said: "God." I went back in, and it shrunk 25% again.'

But then a later checkup revealed it had swelled once more. 

The 65-year-old won figure skating gold for the United States at the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo

'Then COVID hit and going into any kind of hospital situation was almost impossible,' Hamilton continued.

'In my spirit, in my inner being, I realized: I'm totally at peace with not even looking at it again. Unless I become symptomatic.'

Surgery is not the only possible treatment on the table for the former figure skater. 

'The ace I have up my sleeve is that now there is a targeted radiation therapy that will shrink the tumor,' he explained. 'And in that, I can avoid a lot of other things like surgery and chemo... I'm blessed beyond my wildest imagination.'