LOS ANGELES, Dec 22 (Reuters) – U.S singer-songwriter Barry Manilow announced on Monday through Instagram that he has been diagnosed with lung cancer, prompting him to pause his scheduled concerts while he undergoes surgery.
“As many of you know I recently went through six weeks of bronchitis followed by a relapse of another five weeks,” the 82-year-old Grammy-winner wrote in the Instagram statement.
“Even though I was over the bronchitis and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI just to make sure that everything was OK. The MRI discovered a cancerous spot on my left lung that needs to be removed,” he said.
Manilow included the new schedule for his concerts in his post, and said he expects to be feeling better by February since his treatment does not require radiation or chemotherapy.
“Just chicken soup and ‘I Love Lucy’ reruns,” Manilow wrote, referring to a classic U.S. sitcom.
The singer ended his post by urging people to get tested if they have any health concerns.
Manilow, whose hits include songs “Mandy”, “Copacabana” and “Can’t Smile Without You,” has a career spanning over 60 years.
He attended the New York College of Music and the Juilliard School, where he studied musical theatre.
Apart from being a songwriter, Manilow has also worked on numerous films, Broadway shows and television productions.
His acting included roles in the film “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” and the television shows “Family Guy” and “Will and Grace.”
Manilow married his high-school sweetheart, Susan Deixler, in 1964, but the marriage was short-lived.
In 2017, he spoke for the first time about being gay and his previously secret, almost 40-year romance with husband Garry Kief, saying he feared he would disappoint his mostly female fan base had he come out decades ago.
Manilow and his manager Kief, whom he met in 1978, had been together for years before marrying quietly in Palm Springs, California, in 2014.
(Reporting by Danielle Broadway and Marie-Louise Gumuchian; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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