Country Music Star Gives Grim Update After Cancer Diagnosis

Fabled Mavericks frontman Raul Malo shared grim news with his followers, confirming that his battle with cancer has taken a turn for the worse after being diagnosed last year.

Since then, Malo, 60, has been in and out of the hospital as he seeks treatment for stage 4 colon cancer, a once-terminal diagnosis that more recently has become treatable; however, given Malo’s age, the survival rate hovers around 13%, according to the American Cancer Society.

The Grammy-winning artist shared the heartbreaking news on Wednesday that he has developed leptomeningeal disease, which occurs when cancer cells form in the leptomeninges, the thin membrane separating the brain from the spinal cord. Most patients who receive the diagnosis are given less than a year to live.

Strumming his guitar, Malo told his followers that he had found peace despite his condition and was preparing for the end of his time on earth.

“Things have taken a turn. As it goes with cancer, it’s a very unpredictable and indiscriminatory disease,” the singer wrote to his 26,000 Instagram followers.

“I’ve developed something called LMD, which stands for ‘get this s*** out of my head,'” he said. Treatment for leptomeninges involves heavy dosages of radiation.

“Treatment for this is radiation, which I will start tomorrow. We will probably jump into some chemo, and are even looking at alternative therapies.”

“But it’s time to take your words to heart of resting and recovering, so that’s what I’m going to do.”

Malo’s multicultural American band has been forced to cancel numerous shows as a result of his struggle, but Wednesday’s news now means “all shows going forward” are off the table for the time being.

“We’ll continue doing cool projects, releasing live recordings, merchandise, Trovador, and so forth,” he continued.

“I want to thank Dwight Yoakam, his band, and crew for their kindness and understanding this year, and sorry we couldn’t finish the tour the way we planned.”

Nashville fans may be in for a surprise, however, and Malo urged them to “hold on” to their tickets for two scheduled shows on Dec. 5 and 6, “as we are planning something special there, and hope to announce that very soon.”

“We don’t know what this will look like a couple months from now, but we are going into it like we have with everything else – full steam ahead,” Malo continued.

“Fight, recover, rest, repeat. I want to thank you all for your incredible support through all this, and sorry about the cancellations but we have no choice anymore.”

The “What a Crying Shame” singer thanked his adult sons Dino, Vincent, and Max for being by his side through it all, the Daily Mail reported.

“I want to let everybody know, I am in no way alone, or scared,” Malo wrote.

“Your love, prayers, and well wishes have not gone unnoticed.”