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12th Oct 2020

The Wanted’s Tom Parker reveals inoperable brain tumour diagnosis

Wil Jones

“We are all absolutely devastated but we are gonna fight this all the way.”

Tom Parker of boy band The Wanted has revealed he has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour.

The 32-year-old star made the announcement on Instagram, confirming that he was already undergoing treatment.

“Hey guys, you know that we’ve both been quiet on social media for a few weeks and it’s time to tell you why,” Tom Parker told fans in the post, which featured a photo of himself with his partner Kelsey and his daughter.

“There’s no easy way to say this but I’ve sadly been diagnosed with a Brain Tumour and I’m already undergoing treatment.”

View this post on Instagram

Hey guys, you know that we’ve both been quiet on social media for a few weeks and it’s time to tell you why. There’s no easy way to say this but I’ve sadly been diagnosed with a Brain Tumour and I’m already undergoing treatment. We decided, after a lot of thought, that rather than hiding away and trying to keep it a secret, we would do one interview where we could lay out all the details and let everyone know the facts in our own way. We are all absolutely devastated but we are gonna fight this all the way. We don’t want your sadness, we just want love and positivity and together we will raise awareness of this terrible disease and look for all available treatment options. It’s gonna be a tough battle but with everyone’s love and support we are going to beat this. Tom and Kelsey xxx

A post shared by Tom Parker (@tomparkerofficial) on

“We decided, after a lot of thought, that rather than hiding away and trying to keep it a secret, we would do one interview where we could lay out all the details and let everyone know the facts in our own way. We are all absolutely devastated but we are gonna fight this all the way.

“We don’t want your sadness, we just want love and positivity and together we will raise awareness of this terrible disease and look for all available treatment options. It’s gonna be a tough battle but with everyone’s love and support we are going to beat this.”

The Wanted were formed in 2009, with Tom Parker joining bandmates Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness, and Nathan Sykes. Their debut single ‘All Time Low’ reached number one in the UK in 2010.

They also hit the top of the UK charts in 2011 with ‘Glad You Came’, from their second album Battleground.

The band were not just a success in the UK and Ireland – ‘Glad You Came’ sold three million copies in the US and reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 2014, the band announced they were going on hiatus, and have not released any material since their 2013 album World of Mouth.

Since then, Tom Parker has competed on The Jump and Celebrity Masterchef, and played Danny Zuko in the UK tour of Grease.