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Michael Bolton Breaks Silence About His Aggressive Brain Cancer Diagnosis in Emotional First Interview

Michael Bolton exclusively opens up to PEOPLE in this week's cover story about facing his glioblastoma diagnosis and facing brain cancer with his family by his side and sense of humor intact.

That soulful baritone helped him sell more than 75 million records and earned him two Grammys throughout his 50-year career—and after he awoke from emergency brain surgery on Dec. 4, 2023, it served as a beacon of hope amid uncertainty. Over the past year and a half, Bolton’s daughters have leaned into moments of joy and levity as their dad, 72, tackles his greatest challenge yet: glioblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer. He was diagnosed with glioblastoma in December 2023 after undergoing emergency surgery, during which doctors were able to remove a brain tumor in his entirety (Bolton’s neuro-oncologist, Dr. Ingo Mellinghoff of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, says this happens with just 30 to 40 percent of glio cases).

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