Ann Wilson announces cancer diagnosis, postpones Heart tour

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ann Wilson, lead singer of rock band Heart, says she has cancer and the band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour while she undergoes treatment.

Wilson said in a statement Tuesday that she underwent a surgery to remove a cancerous growth and is recovering steadily, but that her doctors urged her to undergo preventive chemotherapy and take time off from performing “in order to fully recover.” That meant the rest of the shows on the North American tour will be postponed to dates in 2025.

“To the ticket buyers, I really do wish we could do these gigs. Please know that I absolutely plan to be back on stage in 2025,” Wilson said in the statement. “My team is getting those details sorted & we’ll let you know the plan as soon as we can.”

All previously purchased tickets for the now-postponed shows will be honored. The rescheduled dates will be announced in the coming weeks, according to the release.

“This is merely a pause. I’ve much more to sing,” Wilson continued in the statement before adding, “Respectfully, this is the last public statement l’d like to make on the matter.”

Over 50 shows at stadium and arena venues in dozens of cities across the U.S. and Canada are impacted by the postponement. Select shows were set to include performances from Def Leppard and Journey, and Heart has not announced whether those bands will accompany them at the rescheduled performances.

The band, led by Wilson and her sister Nancy Wilson on the guitar, canceled the European leg of their tour in May, citing that the singer had to have "a time-sensitive but routine procedure for which the minimum recovery time is six weeks.”

Wilson posted on Instagram at the time of the European shows' cancellation, writing, “I’m okay! Please don’t worry. I do apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. It’s certainly an inconvenience for me.”

The Wilson sisters, who made hits like “Magic Man,” “Crazy on You” and “Alone,” have made music together since the ’70s. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers were honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2023.

FILE - Nancy Wilson, left, and Ann Wilson, of the band Heart, attend the premiere of HBO's "Foo Fighters Sonic Highway" on Oct. 14, 2014, In New York. Ann Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Nancy Wilson, left, and Ann Wilson, of the band Heart, perform as the band is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Los Angeles on April 18, 2013. Ann Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (Photo by Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Ann Wilson, of the band Heart, performs onstage at the "Vh1 Divas Salute the Troops" on Friday, Dec. 3, 2010 in San Diego. Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)

FILE - Nancy Wilson, left, and her sister Ann, of the band Heart, perform during "An Evening with Heart" at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on May 24, 2010. Ann Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

FILE - The rock group Heart, from left, Steve Fossen, Nancy Wilson, Michael Derosier, Ann Wilson and Howard Leese pose in Los Angeles on Feb. 19, 1980. Ann Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (AP Photo, File)

FILE -Ann Wilson, of Heart, performs at RFK Stadium in Washington on July 4, 2015. Wilson says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. (Photo by Nick Wass/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Nancy Wilson, left, and Ann Wilson of Heart perform on opening night of the Heartbreaker Tour at the Cruzan Amphitheater in West Palm Beach, Fla., June 17, 2013. Ann Wilson, lead singer of rock band Heart, says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. Wilson said in a statement Tuesday that she underwent a surgery to remove a cancerous growth and is recovering steadily, but that her doctors urged her to undergo preventive chemotherapy and take time off from performing. (Photo by Jeff Daly/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Ann Wilson performs during Farm Aid on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in Noblesville, Ind. Wilson, lead singer of rock band Heart, says she has cancer. The band is postponing the remaining shows on its Royal Flush Tour. Wilson said in a statement Tuesday that she underwent a surgery to remove a cancerous growth and is recovering steadily, but that her doctors urged her to undergo preventive chemotherapy and take time off from performing (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File)

BERLIN (AP) — UEFA suspended Turkey player Merih Demiral for two matches on Friday for making a controversial hand gesture at the European Championship, an incident that has led to a diplomatic row between Turkey and host nation Germany.

Turkey's vice president, Cevdet Yilmaz, denounced the decision as unacceptable and called for it to be “corrected.”

“The excitement and beauty of football should not be overshadowed by political decisions,” Yilmaz said.

The ban rules Demiral out of his team's quarterfinal against the Netherlands on Saturday, and the semifinal, should Turkey progress.

After scoring his second goal in Turkey's round-of-16 win against Austria, Demiral made a sign with each hand that is used by Turkish nationalists and associated with the Turkish ultra-nationalist organization Ulku Ocaklari, which is more widely known as the Gray Wolves.

Demiral had said it was an innocent expression of national pride and that he was hoping he’d have “more opportunities to do the same gesture again.”

It was condemned by German interior minister Nancy Faeser and other German politicians, leading to a harsh rebuke from Turkish authorities and the summoning of the German ambassador.

UEFA said it banned Demiral “for failing to comply with the general principles of conduct, for violating the basic rules of decent conduct, for using sports events for manifestations of a non-sporting nature and for bringing the sport of football into disrepute.”

Speaking before the decision, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is due to attend Saturday's game in Berlin, said the 26-year-old defender had merely expressed his “excitement” after scoring against Austria.

The Turkish soccer association had no immediate reaction to the ban, though Turkish media reports said the association would appeal the decision at the Court of Arbitration of Sport.

Omer Celik, the spokesman for Erdogan's ruling party, criticized UEFA's ban as a “an extremely wrong decision.” He suggested that the governing body had bowed to the influence of “certain pressure groups.”

“UEFA’s decision has cast a shadow of political influence over football,” Celik wrote on the social media platform X.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said the decision "has reinforced the view that there is an increase in the tendency to act with prejudice against foreigners in certain European countries.”

Demiral was previously one of 16 Turkey players reprimanded in 2019 for making military-style salutes at games at a time when the country was conducting a military offensive in Syria.

The Gray Wolves group was founded as the youth wing of Turkey’s far-right Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, which is currently in an alliance with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party, the Justice and Development Party.

In the decades following its founding in the 1960s, the group was accused of in the involvement in politically motivated violence, mostly against leftist groups.

Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, contributed to this report.

AP Euro 2024: https://apnews.com/hub/euro-2024

FILE - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to the media during a news conference following Friday noon prayers in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 3, 2024. Erdogan and President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan will be guests of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra, File)

Turkey's Merih Demiral celebrates after scoring his side second goal during a round of sixteen match between Austria and Turkey at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Leipzig, Germany, Tuesday, July 2, 2024. UEFA has launched an investigation into Turkey soccer player Merih Demiral's “alleged inappropriate behavior” after he celebrated a goal at Euro 2024 by displaying a hand sign associated with an ultra-nationalist group. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)