Music Legend Barry Manilow Scheduled for Surgery for a Lung Cancer Diagnosis.
Barry Manilow announced that he received a diagnosis with lung cancer and will be having surgery.
Cancer Caught Early
The legendary 82-year-old artist, whose parade of upbeat chart-toppers from "I Write the Songs" cemented his status as one of pop music’s most beloved performers, will have an operation to extract a portion of his lung in an effort to combat the illness, which is detected early.
“For those who have been following, I recently endured six weeks of bronchitis followed by a recurrence of another five weeks.
“Although I was recovered from the illness and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor requested an MRI just to make sure that everything was OK.
“The MRI identified a malignant lesion on my left side that requires removed. It’s incredible chance (and a great doctor) that it was caught so early.”
Rescheduled Shows
He has delayed a series of forthcoming shows, but stated he would be back on stage by mid-February for his longstanding residency at his Vegas home.
He added: “The medical team do not believe it has metastasized and I’m taking tests to verify their assessment. So, that’s it. Chemo is not needed. No radiation. Just home remedies and favorite shows.
“I’m looking forward to until I return to my second home for our Vegas run for our February love-themed shows.”
A Long Career and Personal Life
Manilow is presently in his 16th year of a concert series in Nevada. The singer has been in the spotlight and publicly identified as gay in 2017, after tying the knot with his manager and long-term partner in secret in 2014.
The couple were in a clandestine relationship for more than 35 years. Recently, Manilow spoke about how important his husband had been to him during his ascent to stardom in the 1970s.
“As my career exploded, it was just overwhelming. And, you know, going back to an vacant room, you can land in a lot of trouble if you, you know, you’re by yourself repeatedly,” he said.
“But I met Garry right around when it was blowing up. And I was spared from having to go back to those isolated suites. I had a person to be vulnerable with or to share joys with.
“I wish that aspiring artists don’t have to go back to those hotel rooms by themselves, because you might succumb to pitfalls. I never did. But it was quite isolating until I met Garry. And then it was a shared adventure.”