Singer Michael Bolton reveals recent brain surgery, announces temporary break from touring to recover
Two-time Grammy Award winning singer and songwriter Michael Bolton revealed in a social media post that he had successful emergency brain surgery before the holidays.
The "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" singer shared the medical update on Instagram over the weekend.
"Just before the holidays, it was discovered that I had a brain tumor, which required immediate surgery," he wrote, adding "Thanks to my incredible medical team."
Bolton didn't disclose if the brain tumor was cancerous or not, nor did he suggest a specific reason behind the urgency of the surgery in this case.
According to the American Brain Tumor Association, brain tumors can affect "people of all ages, races, ethnicities, and genders," and that more than 1.3 million Americans are "living with a primary or secondary/metastatic brain tumor today."
Because the brain plays a central role in the control of both voluntary and involuntary bodily functions, a brain tumor can affect multiple bodily systems, as well as cognitive abilities.
Dr. Leah Croll, a neurologist at Temple University, told "Good Morning America" that "if the tumor is located in a part of the brain that controls language, we would expect language to be impacted. Whereas if the tumor is located in a part of the brain that has more to do with movement, or memory or vision, we would expect those things to be impacted."
Grammy-winner Bolton, 70, who released his first album nearly 50 years ago, further shared in his Instagram post that "For the next couple of months, I will be devoting my time and energy to my recovery which means I'll have to take a temporary break from touring."
"After a brain surgery, the recovery happens over weeks to months," Dr. Croll told "GMA." "For most people, it's going to involve some kind of combination of physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, depending on what their individual needs are."
While some brain tumors can be removed with no risk of recurrence or lingering effects, other types of tumors can carry greater risks or cannot be completely removed, resulting in potential changes or complications related to both the tumor and the surgery to address it
Approximately 90,000 people are diagnosed every year with a primary brain tumor – that is, a tumor that originates in the brain – according to the ABTA, with over one million people currently living with a diagnosis of a primary brain tumor.
