Barry Manilow is opening up about his diagnosis.
After a recent bout of illness, the music legend underwent further testing.
Doctors discovered that he has cancer.
There is both good news and bad news, Manilow told his fans and followers.
Music legend Barry Manilow is sharing his cancer diagnosis
On Monday, December 22, legendary musician Barry Manilow marked the second day of winter by sharing some rough news on Instagram.
“We just finished five great Christmas concerts at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert,” he began.
The 82-year-old acknowledged: “This marks the seventh time we have done these charity concerts and raised millions for nonprofit organizations throughout the Coachella Valley.”
Manilow then wrote: “As many of you know I recently went through six weeks of bronchitis followed by a relapse of another five weeks.”
He continued: “Even though I was over the bronchitis and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI to make sure that everything was OK.”
“The MRI discovered a cancerous spot on my left lung that needs to be removed,” Manilow revealed.
“It’s pure luck (and a great doctor) that it was found so early,” he acknowledged.
Manilow then affirmed: “That’s the good news.” Unfortunately, that is not the end of it.
“The bad news is that now that the Christmas A Gift Of Love concerts are over,” he continued, “I’m going into surgery to have the spot removed.”
Manilow shared further good news: “The doctors do not believe it was spread and I’m taking tests to confirm their diagnosis.”
He is hoping for an easy recovery
“So, that’s it,” Barry Manilow announced. “No chemo. No radiation. Just chicken soup and I Love Lucy reruns.”
He was a kid when I Love Lucy first premiered. Many people find that their “comfort shows” stem from childhood.
“The only follow-up is a month to recover,” Manilow revealed.
“And,” he explained, “that means we have to reschedule the January arena concerts.”
His post includes a lot of information on the rescheduling.
“I’m very sorry that you have to change your plans,” Manilow expressed.
“Just like you,” he assured, “we were all looking forward to the January shows.”
Manilow continued: “And hate having to move everything around.”
These rescheduled dates include stops in places like Orlando, Tampa, and even Columbus.
Those who are already ticket-holders will be able to repurpose those January tickets for the new dates.
Catching cancer in stage 1 is a best-case scenario
Cancer is never good news.
But catching cancer in stage one and having the financial means to undergo life-saving surgery before it spreads or causes any detectable pain or symptoms?
That is about as good as cancer news can get.
Barrow Manilow is a living treasure and a cultural icon.
We wish him an uneventful surgery and an easy recovery.