Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine Reveals Condition Affecting His Hands

Megadeth's Dave Mustaine revealed which condition has been affecting his hands and thus led to him deciding to embark on a farewell tour before retiring.

The thrash legends confirmed their upcoming eponymous album and its accompanying world tour will be their last back in August. They've since shared three tracks from the set, "Tipping Point," "I Don't Care" and "Let There Be Shred."

Mustaine has spoken a bit about his decision to call it quits after this last run, but he went into detail about the specifics of the health ailment that's been affecting him during a new interview with MariskalRockTV.

What Condition Is Affecting Dave Mustaine's Hands?

While Megadeth were working on Megadeth in the studio, Mustaine experienced a lot of pain in his hands. He told the band's management he was struggling and that led to a conversation about retiring.

"I just said one day to my management, 'You know, I don't know how much longer I'm gonna be able to do this.' I didn't say, 'Hey, I wanna retire right now'," he recalled.

The rocker held his hand up and showed the interviewer what's called Dupuytren's contracture, a condition that creates a thick cord of tissue in the palm that bends one or more fingers and pulls them toward the center of the hand [via Mayo Clinic].

Dupuytren's contracture affects more men than women and is more common after the age of 50. It progressively worsens overtime and treatments are only available to relieve symptoms and slow down the progression.

Mayo Clinic notes studies that have shown a correlation between the condition and individuals that use "vibrating tools" in their occupation.

READ MORE: Megadeth Cover Metallica Song Dave Mustaine Co-Wrote on Final Album

"It's gonna make my finger come down like this," Mustaine explained. "It's already started, where it's kind of bunching up a little bit. And then if you look at the tips of my fingers, they're severely arthritic. So all those bumps makes it really painful to play."

Mustaine plans to undergo surgery to try and correct the condition at some point, but doesn't want to risk any setbacks prior to the start of Megadeth's final tour.

"If I wait until my hands are causing a problem and I try it and it doesn't work, well then I've toured everywhere, I've said farewell everybody and am not leaving stuff unsaid or unfinished."

See the whole clip below.

Megadeth's Dave Mustaine Reveals Condition Affecting His Hands

When Does Megadeth's Farewell Tour Start?

Megadeth will be out Jan. 23, 2026 and the band's This Was Our Life farewell tour starts a few weeks later on Feb. 15 in Canada. They'll hit other parts of North America, South America and Europe throughout 2026 and some of the dates are with Iron Maiden.

Mustaine told Kerrang! in November that Megadeth's final tour will likely take place over the next three to five years, so there may be more than one opportunity to catch them in or near your city.

See all of their dates and ticket details on their website.

In addition to Megadeth's farewell, see more of next year's highly anticipated tours directly below!