Coleen Nolan’s brother Brian has confirmed he’s been diagnosed with cancer, months after their sister Linda’s death.
The Dublin-born singer and member of The Nolan Sisters died on January 15 at the age of 65 in Blackpool, surrounded by her siblings including sisters; Anne, 74, Denise, 72, Maureen, 69, and Coleen, 59.
She was laid to rest in a sparkly pink coffin during a service in Lancashire on February 1, with fans, her family and friends in attendance.
Linda had first been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005 and was given the all-clear in 2011, but in 2017 was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer. It spread in 2020, and by 2023 was in her brain.
The Nolans also lost their sister Bernie in 2013, after she died of breast cancer at the age of 52.
Anne was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000 (she was given the all-clear from cancer for the second time in 2022), while Coleen revealed on Loose Women she had skin cancer in 2023.
Now their brother Brian, 69, has revealed he is suffering from stage 2 prostate cancer.
‘I just want cancer to leave us alone,’ he said, the fifth of eight Nolan siblings.
Speaking to The Mirror, Brian said: ‘You’re never ready for somebody to say: “Yes, you’ve got cancer.”
‘It’s like being hit by a train. You start plunging into the abyss of: “I’m going to die.”‘
He said his urologist told him that they are going to ‘treat’ and ‘cure’ the disease, with Brian adding that’s what he is focused on and he ‘hopes’ to have the courage his sisters did.
Coleen also spoke of the shock she felt hearing the news.
‘I couldn’t speak, I went completely numb and about an hour later I wanted to punch walls and scream.
‘In our family, cancer’s just there. But he was so positive and I’m just so proud of him.
‘We’re a family that treat everything with as much humour as possible and we go “OK, we can face this together.” That’s what we’ll do.’
Brian has been through a tough few weeks after the death of Linda and dealing with his own diagnosis.
He is yet to undergo surgery to remove his prostate gland, but has been told that the cancer has thankfully not spread.
He decided to keep his diagnosis a secret from his siblings amid Linda’s health battle, after having blood tests to screen for prostate cancer and an MRI scan just after Christmas, with a biopsy in the New Year.
What is the prostate?
Only men have a prostate gland and it is usually the size and bears similar shape to a walnut. It does grow as you get older. The prostate sits under the bladder and surrounds the uretha – which is the tube that men urinate and ejaculate through.
The prostates job is to make semen which is the fluid that contains sperm.
Prostate cancers can develop when cells start to grow abnormally. Some men develop prostate cancer that is more likely to spread.
For more information about prostate cancer visit https://prostatecanceruk.org.
‘I thought I was doing the right thing and I still do. It would have meant more tears and we were already knee-deep in tears and knee-deep in grief,’ he said.
Coleen previously said she also didn’t want to tell her family after discovering a ‘tiny bit of skin’ on her shoulder was a basal cell carcinoma.
Speaking on Loose Women in 2023, she said: ‘It hits you like a ton of bricks.
‘It was so shocking that my first instinct, typical me, was to laugh hysterically. I just thought that was the most ridiculous thing.’
‘I’m sick of cancer,’ she stated, admitting that at first she didn’t want to tell anyone in her family, particularly considering what her sister Linda was going through.
‘It seemed so pathetic,’ she added.
Basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer, ‘does not usually spread to other parts of the body’, the NHS outlines.
Macmillan cancer support
If you or someone you care about has been diagnosed with cancer, Macmillan can offer support and information.
You can contact their helpline on 0808 808 00 00 (7 days a week from 8am to 8pm), use their webchat service, or visit their site for more information.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
