Barry Manilow has been forced to postpone the start of his upcoming arena tour after a ‘very depressing visit’ to his surgeon.
The 82-year-old entertainer had surgery in December to remove a ‘cancerous spot’ found on his lung.
He confirmed at the time it meant his cancer had been caught early enough for him to not need chemotherapy or radiation; however, his doctor doesn’t believe he is ready to return to the stage just yet.
Explaining that he has been advised to postpone his February concerts, Barry shared his conversation with his doctor in a statement on Instagram as he apologised for the delay.
‘Hi everyone. Barry here. Just got home from visiting the surgeon. Very depressing visit,’ he began.
‘I told him that I have been using the treadmill three times a day (I have) but that I still couldn’t sing more than three songs in a row before I had to stop. But I was sure that I would be able to do the Arena shows in a few weeks.’
Continuing in story-telling mode, the Mandy hitmaker then recounted how the medical expert had reacted.
‘He shook his head. He looked at me and then he looked at the floor. “What?” I said.
‘He said, “Barry, you won’t be ready to do a 90 minute show. Your lungs aren’t ready yet. You’re in great shape considering what you’ve been through, but your body isn’t ready. You shouldn’t do the first Arena shows. You won’t make it through.”’
The singer-songwriter then admitted he’d ‘had a feeling he’d say that’.
‘Deep down, I wanted to go back – but my body knew what my heart didn’t want to admit: I wasn’t ready.’
Barry went on to share the rescheduled dates and promised his fans that he is doing everything he can to get back on stage.
He wrote: ‘I’m so sorry I have to reschedule the first batch of Arena shows from February 27th – March 17th.
‘He said I could likely do the Vegas shows at the very end of March and the second batch of Arena shows beginning in April.
‘I’m SO, SO sorry I have to reschedule some of these first Arena shows. Again! But when I do come back, I will COME BACK!!!’
He had originally had to push his January shows to these February dates when planning for a month of recovery after his surgery, but has now had to take a little longer with his original ‘chicken soup and I Love Lucy reruns’ recovery.
Barry also made sure to ‘once again’ thank his fans and loved ones ‘for your wonderful notes and phone calls of support’.
‘The doctor said that my body had been through hell and that it needed time to heal. So, I’m going back to healing. All my love and gratitude, B,’ he signed off.
His followers flooded the comments section with their support, urging him to ‘take his time’.
‘This is the right move Barry! Everyone is supportive and willing to wait! You are loved!’ posted Leeza Gibbons, while Jenny Hodge added: ‘Come back when you are ready, Barry. We’ll still be here for you!’
‘Supporting you & loving you always, Barry ! Take good, good care of your wonderful self,’ commented Broadway star Donna Murphy.
The Copacabana star went public with his cancer diagnosis in December revealing it was discovered ‘out of pure luck’ after a precautionary MRI scan as he spent weeks battling a bout of bronchitis.
Barry, who came out as gay in 2017 after keeping his sexuality a secret for decades over fears of disappointing his fans, previously revealed a throat cancer diagnosis in 2020, but made a swift recovery.
He has previously been open about how he became hooked on cigarettes at the age of nine and smoked for decades, but now prefers vaping and e-cigarettes.
Speaking in 2012, per The Standard, he said: ‘Well, I smoked for 30 years. I started when I was nine years old. I grew up in Brooklyn. Then I stopped about 15, 20 years ago.
‘Then I just started in Las Vegas and the band and I went down to a little club and somebody offered me a cigarette. And I was back.
‘Within a week I was back. Not on a pack a day, ’cause when I was really smoking I was on three packs a day – non filters. Oh yeah. I was a great smoker.’
He has also overcome numerous other health issues in the past, including bronchial pneumonia, a mouth tumor, heart problems and hip surgery.
Barry has sold more than 85 million albums worldwide with hits including Could It Be Magic, Can’t Smile Without You, and Copacabana (At the Copa).
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