In 1999, Stewart was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, for which he underwent surgery in July 2000. Besides being a major health scare, the resulting surgery also threatened his famous voice, and he had to re-learn how to sing. Since then he has been active in raising funds for The City of Hope Foundation charity to find cures for all forms of cancer, especially those affecting children.
Stewart has remained physically active in recent years, playing in a senior soccer league in Palos Verdes, California and still kicking balls into the audience during concerts. When discussing the rock 'n' roll excesses he has been through in his career, he maintains that his love of playing football (soccer) has been his Savior. He is a well-known supporter of Celtic F.C., which he mentions in his hit "You're in My Heart", and the Scotland national team. Rod is one of only two people to have a seat for life at Celtic Park, the other one being the comedian Billy Connolly. Stewart also follows Manchester United as his English side, and he explains his love affair with both Celtic and Man United in Frank Worall's book Celtic United.
Stewart is also a keen model railway enthusiast, having a 23 x 124-foot HO scale layout in his California home, called the Three Rivers City, modelled after the New York Central and the Pennsylvania Railroads during the 1940s, which has now made the pages of the December 2007 issue of Model Railroader Magazine. In the article he said that he would rather be in a model railroading magazine than a music magazine, and his passion for the hobby has been blamed for contributing to the end of his second marriage. He has a layout based on Britain's East Coast Main Line at his UK home, located in Essex on part of the Copped Hall estate.
A keen car enthusiast, particularly for Ferrari, he owns one of the 400 Enzo Ferrari. In 1982, Stewart was car-jacked in Los Angeles while he was standing next to his $50,000 Porsche, which was parked on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. which was subsequently recovered.
On 11 October 2005, Stewart received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. (Star number 2093) On 18 April and 19 April 2006 Stewart was the guest artist and celebrity vocal coach on American Idol, leading the remaining seven finalists in singing entries from the Great American Songbook.
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