Barefoot Gen creator Keiji Nakazawa revealed that he was hospitalized for three monthe due to lung cancer and related ailments. However, he still attended the February 4 opening of a Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum exhibition of his art, where he said "I somehow got better."

According to Nakazawa and his wife, the creator checked into a Hiroshima hospital last September when he experienced shortness of breath. There, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He underwent surgery, and was discharged one month later. Nakazawa's health quickly deteriorated, and he was forced to return to the hospital. He was released at the end of December.

Nakazawa was cheerful at the opening, where he quipped that he was glad that the event didn't turn into a retrospective. He abandoned plans for a sequel to Barefoot Gen in 2009, due to declining eyeshifht, though he does hope to announce a new film or video project.