Barry Manilow Shares Positive Update Following Lung Cancer Diagnosis
Barry Manilow has provided an update regarding his health following a diagnosis of lung cancer.
The Grammy Award-winning artist, 82, shared a photograph of himself smiling while resting in a hospital bed on Friday, January 2. Alongside the photo, Manilow reassured his fans on Friday that he was feeling “better today.”
Manilow received a flood of positive messages and well-wishes from his Instagram followers. Melanie Taylor, Manilow’s longtime background vocalist, expressed, “that’s my boss y’all” in the comments.
“He’s navigating through this difficult time! Sending you love, B,” Taylor continued.
Guns N’ Roses and The Cult member Matt Sorum added, “Wishing you a speedy recovery, Barry, sending you my best.”
“Sending you all my love, Barry,” drag icon Coco Peru commented.
On December 22, Manilow revealed his lung cancer diagnosis and confirmed that he would soon undergo surgery.
“As many of you are aware, I recently experienced six weeks of bronchitis followed by a recurrence of another five weeks. Even though I had recovered from the bronchitis and was back performing at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI just to ensure everything was alright,” he shared via Instagram. “The MRI revealed a cancerous spot on my left lung that requires removal. It’s fortunate (and thanks to a great doctor) that it was detected so early. That’s the encouraging news.”
The “Can’t Smile Without You” singer explained that he needed to complete his annual Christmas concerts in December before scheduling a date to “have the spot removed.”
“The doctors do not believe it has spread, and I’m undergoing tests to confirm their assessment. So, that’s the situation. No chemotherapy. No radiation. Just chicken soup and I Love Lucy reruns,” he wrote.
The singer-songwriter announced that he would need “approximately a month to recuperate” post-operation, so he was canceling scheduled performances in January. (Manilow had been slated to headline shows in Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and Ohio this month.)
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“I sincerely regret that you have to alter your plans,” he wrote to his fans. “Like you, we were all eagerly anticipating the January shows and are disappointed to have to reschedule everything.”
Looking ahead, Manilow stated that he intends to return to the stage for his Valentine’s Day weekend concerts at Westgate Las Vegas on February 12-14.
“Something tells me that February weekend is going to be a wonderful celebration!,” Manilow concluded. “I hope you have a joyous Christmas and a Happy New Year. And remember, if you notice even the slightest symptom… get checked! I’ll see you at the Westgate Las Vegas for Valentine’s!”
Manilow has been candid about his history of smoking. He told The Evening Standard in 2012 that he’d “smoked for 30 years,” having initially started when he was only “9 years old.”
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“Then I quit for a while, about 15, 20 years ago,” he clarified. “Then I started again in Las Vegas, with the band, at a small club and someone offered me a cigarette. And I was back. Not on a pack a day, because when I was really smoking I was on three packs a day — non filters. Oh yeah. I was a dedicated smoker.”
More recently, Manilow switched to vaping. Prior to his recent lung cancer diagnosis, Manilow had previously battled bronchial pneumonia, an oral tumor, and was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma — a type of throat cancer — in 2020. (Manilow underwent surgery and vocal therapy following his 2020 throat cancer diagnosis and eventually made a full recovery.)
In 2019, Manilow admitted to the Daily Mirror that he was prepared to accept the consequences after a lifetime of smoking.
“I’m doing well, I’m expecting the other shoe to drop. I’m very old, I shouldn’t be able to do this,” he said. “You saw me going up those stairs on stage — there’s 14 steps up and 14 down, you would think I should be in a wheelchair or something.”
Manilow is receiving support throughout his lung cancer recovery from his husband, Garry Kief, whom he married in 2014 after more than 35 years together.
