Lead singer of 80s legends Heart diagnosed with cancer, forced to postpone world tour

Known for hits like Alone and Barracuda, Heart have been forced to postpone their world tour after some sad personal news.

Ann Wilson, lead singer of rock band Heart, has revealed that she’s been diagnosed with cancer.

It’s been announced that the legendary band has been forced to postpone the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour while she undergoes treatment.

US band Heart have been forced to postpone their tour after Wilson was diagnosed with cancer. Picture: Universal Music group.

Wilson said in a statement Tuesday that she underwent a surgery to remove a cancerous growth and is recovering steadily, but that her doctors urged her to undergo preventive chemotherapy and take time off from performing “in order to fully recover.”

That meant the rest of the shows on the North American tour will be postponed to dates in 2025.

“To the ticket buyers, I really do wish we could do these gigs. Please know that I absolutely plan to be back on stage in 2025,” Wilson said in the statement. “My team is getting those details sorted & we’ll let you know the plan as soon as we can.”

“This is merely a pause. I’ve much more to sing,” Wilson continued. “Respectfully, this is the last public statement I'd like to make on the matter.”

Preventive chemotherapy refers to treatment that is conducted after an initial treatment, like surgery, to prevent cancer from coming back.

Nancy and Ann Wilson are best known for the band’s earth-shattering hit Alone. Picture: Universal Music Group.

The band, led by Wilson and her sister Nancy Wilson on the guitar, had previously cancelled the European leg of their tour in May, citing that the singer had to have “a time-sensitive but routine procedure for which the minimum recovery time is six weeks.”

The 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees split in 2016 after an incident that involved Ann’s husband assaulting Nancy’s twin sons.

They performed separately in the years that followed, and reunited in 2019 for the Love Alive tour.

It would be four years before they would come back together for a live performance, and in January, they announced the Royal Flush World tour.

They hugely successful group are best known for their hit records that include Alone, Barracuda and These Dreams.