Candi Staton has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
The 78-year-old soul singer received the news on the first day of rehearsals for her summer tour, and she has urged women "to get a regular mammogram" in order to get the disease detected early.
In a statement, she said: "I’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer.
"After all I’ve gone through in my life – the domestic abuse, the bad relationships, alcoholism, fighting with record labels for royalties and all of that stuff – it’s the last thing I ever expected to go through, but I’m going through it and I plan to beat it.
"Cancer can happen to anyone. I found a lump through self-check, so I really encourage women – including elderly women – to get a regular mammogram."
The ‘Young Hearts Run Free’ hitmaker explained she decided not to announce the difficult news right away because she wanted to give herself time to process it.
She added: "I decided to keep it to myself and do some soul-searching. I went through all of the emotions: denial, ‘poor me’ and anger.
"It really helped me to be on the road, doing something I love to do, and was born to do."
Candi – who released her latest album ‘Unstoppable’ over the summer- admitted the diagnosis did give her feelings of just not getting a break, and she sometimes thinks she’s "had enough" thrown at her.
She explained to Rolling Stone: "You go through your down days, you go through your pity days, but then you come up the next day and you say, ‘I’m not going to take this. You’re not going to take my life. I’m going to fight.’
"I do think, ‘How many other curveballs are going to be thrown in my path before I leave this Earth? Haven’t I had enough?’
"I’ve had to fight from the day I was born all the way up until now, and now that I’m in my older age, I’m like, ‘I just don’t get a break, do I?’"
Candi Staton has breast cancer
