Patrick Swayze is opening up about his health in his first interview since diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last January.

“I’m still fine to work,” he says. “I haven’t changed — oh, I have changed, what am I saying? It’s a battle zone I go through. Chemo, no matter how you cut it, is hell on wheels,” Patrick tells The New York Times.

Patrick is currently on location for his new TV series The Beast. Crime drama about the dark life of undercover F.B.I. agent Charles Barker will premiere on A&E next January. Patrick says he feels so good so far he’s only missed a day and a half of work.