Lee Jae Won of legendary Korean idol group H.O.T battled thyroid cancer in 2014.

On January 10, Korean media outlets reported that Lee Jae Won is battling thyroid cancer. However, Lee Jae Won's representative clarified that the reports are not accurate, but confirmed that Lee had struggled with cancer in the past.

The former H.O.T member was promoting in China prior to the release of the articles, leading fans to be concerned for his health.

"The articles are not true at all," said the representative, according to StarN. "He just got back to Korea from China today, and many fans are showing concerns about the articles."

"Lee Jae Won found out that he was at an early stage of thyroid cancer last year, and he got necessary treatments right away. He is perfectly fine now."

Lee Jae Won also spoke to Star News. "I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer last April," he said. "However, it was in the early stages. That year in July and August I received surgery and now I'm completely recovered."

He also confirmed that his health was not the reason a H.O.T reunion didn't happen following rumors of the group reuniting in 2014.

2014 saw a wave of nostalgia, with disbanded idol groups reuniting for TOTOGA, a special of the show Infinity Challenge. H.O.T was rumored to attend, but didn't appear in the final line-up.  

H.O.T, formed by SM Entertainment in 1996, was one of the first K-pop idol groups, and is considered to be the forerunner to idol groups. The group disbanded in 2001, and members have occasionally mentioned their desire to reunite but due to scheduling conflicts and rumored personal issues have kept the group from reuniting.

Lee Jae Won has pursued a career as a solo artist and as an actor since H.O.T's disbandment. From 2001-2003, Lee and two other former H.O.T members also  performed as jtL.