Country superstar Toby Keith appeared at the People's Choice Country Awards on Thursday to accept the Country Icon Award.

The appearance was much anticipated as Keith has been battling stomach cancer since his diagnosis in June 2022 and has been forced to put his entertaining career on hold. 

Hopeful fans got some much needed good news as Keith told Fox News Digital before accepting the award that he is doing "alright," and his faith has enabled him to get through this battle.

The 62-year-old star said, "I lean on my faith and I just pray and lean into it. You gotta' do what you gotta' do, and I don't know how people do it without faith … that's what I did, it was my rock."

Future plans

Not only are things looking up for Keith as far as his cancer battle are going, he is even hinting at a return to performing soon.

The People's Choice Country Awards were held in Nashville, Tennessee, at the historic Grand Ole Opry.

Keith was awarded the Country Icon award by country singer Blake Shelton, who Keith described as an "old friend."

Keith told Fox News that Shelton is exactly who he wanted the award from.

"He's who I would've chosen. He's an old friend of mine, I was his first tour when he came out." Keith said, "We remain friends, we're a lot of like … kindred spirits kind of thing."

Keith finished off his acceptance with a performance of "Don't Let the Old Man In," demonstrating that not even cancer can keep him from the stage.

Sooner rather than later 

Keith has always been optimistic about his situation. When he was initially diagnosed last year, he assured fans that he would be back sooner rather than later.

In an Instagram post, Keith said, "I am looking forward to spending this time with my family. But I will see the fans sooner than later. I can’t wait."

Even if Keith was unable to perform, he promised that he wouldn't let anything stop him from writing music.

Keith promised, "Writing is something that if the music business went completely away tomorrow — radio stations quit existing and music quit being popular and it was old hat — I would still write songs."