Toby Keith Has Cancer

Country star Toby Keith was diagnosed with stomach cancer last fall, he announced Sunday on Instagram. "I've spent the last six months receiving chemo, radiation and surgery," his statement continues. "So far, so good. I need time to breathe, recover and relax. I am looking forward to spending this time with my family. But I will see the fans sooner than later. I can’t wait." People reports the 60-year-old is currently touring in support of his latest album, and has shows planned in Illinois and Michigan this coming weekend.

CNN reports he had taken time off from touring due to the COVID pandemic, but last year he released Peso In My Pocket, his first album in five years. Also last year, then-President Trump, just before leaving office, awarded the country star the National Medal of Arts, described by the National Endowment for the Arts as "the highest award given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government." Keith has long advocated for cancer patients, in 2006 founding the Toby Keith Foundation, which supports them. In 2014, the foundation opened OK Kids Korral, described as "a cost-free, convenient and comfortable home for pediatric cancer patients receiving treatment." (More Toby Keith stories.)