Elvis Costello cancels tour dates after cancer surgery for ‘aggressive’ tumour

The British singer said he is lucky to be alive 
Cancelled: Elvis Costello has pulled out of tour dates
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Emma Powell6 July 2018
The Weekender

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Elvis Costello has been forced to cancel the remaining six dates of his European tour after undergoing surgery to remove a “very aggressive” tumour.

The iconic musician, 63, is under doctors orders to rest after he went on the road in June, weeks after going under the knife.

In a statement he said: “Six weeks ago my specialist called me and said, ‘You should start playing the Lotto’. He had rarely, if ever, seen such a small but very aggressive cancerous malignancy that could be defeated by a single surgery.”

Costello said he was “elated and relieved” when he set out on the tour, but was soon forced to “accept that it is going to take longer than I would have wished for me to recover my full strength”.

He continued: “I must reluctantly cancel all the remaining engagements of this tour. My apologies go to our ticket holders in Manchester, Pula, Graz, Vienna, Tysnes and Rattvik but I would rather disappoint our friends there by not appearing than in pressing on with a show that is compromised and eventually puts my health at risk.”

Costello, who is famed for hits including Oliver's Army, Shipbuilding, apologised for cancelling the dates, but promised he would get back on the road as soon as possible to play hits from his upcoming 31st studio album which is set for release in October.

He said: “To leave you with some more optimistic news, The Imposters and I -together with several of our other friends - have made a magnificent new record of which we are truly proud. It will be issued in October, I believe. We will return at the soonest opportunity to play that music and your favourite songs that still make sense to us all.”

He finished by urging fans to keep a check on their health and to seek medical advice if they have any concerns. “Take very good care of your loved ones but gentleman, do talk to you friends – you’ll find you are not alone – seek your doctor’s advice if you are in doubt or when it is timely and act as swiftly as you may in these matters,” he said.

“It may save your life. Believe me, it is better than playing roulette.”

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