Celine Dion has announced she is putting her career on hold indefinitely in order to focus on her family and ongoing health issues.
The Canadian singer said Wednesday that she has cancelled her Las Vegas show and a previously scheduled concert tour through Asia in order care for her husband, Rene Angelil, their children, and her own health.
Angelil, 72, had surgery in December to remove a cancerous tumour from his throat. Prior to the surgery, Angelil had stepped aside as Dion's long-time manager. He had undergone treatment for throat cancer in 1999.
Dion has also been struggling with her own health issues.
The 46-year-old chanteuse has been fighting an illness that causes inflammation in her throat muscles, leaving her unable to perform any of her scheduled Las Vegas shows since July 29.
"I want to devote every ounce of my strength and energy to my husband's healing, and to do so, it's important for me to dedicate this time to him and to our children," Dion said in a statement.
"I also want to apologize to all my fans everywhere, for inconveniencing them, and I thank them so much for their love and support."
Dion said since her husband's surgery they have had a very difficult and stressful time, during which she has struggled to juggle her performance schedule and raising her three children.
Dion began performing at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in 2003, with a five-night-a-week show called 'A New Day.' The show ran past its original three-year engagement and wrapped up in December 2007.
She returned to Las Vegas in 2011 for a new show, 'Celine', where she performed approximately 70 shows a year.
Dion met Angelil in 1980 when she was 12-years-old. Angelil became her manager, and the two were married in 1994.
The couple had their first child, Rene-Charles Angelil, in 2001 and welcomed twins Eddy and Nelson in 2010.
