Melissa Etheridge Has Cancer

10/08/2004 12:00 PM, E! Online
Josh Grossberg

Melissa Etheridge is battling breast cancer.

The raspy-throated rocker has been diagnosed with the disease, forcing her to scrap an upcoming fall tour, according to a statement on her Website.

But the good news is the prognosis looks excellent. Doctors discovered the cancer in the early stages and have already begun treatment. Etheridge, 43, will undergo surgery after which she's expected to make a "complete recovery."

Not surprisingly, the Lucky crooner considers herself, well, lucky.

"I am fortunate to be under a wonderful doctor's care and thankful that this was caught early," Etheridge said in a statement. "I am looking forward to a quick and full recovery."

The singer will be recuperating at her Los Angeles home with her partner, actress Tammy Lynn Michaels, and her two children, a boy and a girl, both carried by former gal-pal Julie Cypher as a result of a sperm donation by fellow musician David Crosby . They split in 2000 and share custody of their kids. Two years later, Etheridge met Michaels and the two had a commitment ceremony in September 2003.

The cancer diagnosis prompted the two-time Grammy winner to cancel her upcoming trek in support of her latest album, Lucky, released in February, as well as Lucky Live, a DVD and CD which dropped on Tuesday.

The seven-city jaunt was supposed to kick off Friday night in Lowell, Massachusetts and hit Montreal, D.C., New York City, Oakland and Long Beach before wrapping up in Tucson, Arizona on Oct. 30.

Refunds for those shows are available at points of purchase.

No word on how Etheridge's health scare will affect her upcoming sitcom for ABC, nor her role in the feature film, Southern Comfort, in which she costars with Demi Moore and Sissy Spacek playing one of three women who get sex-change operations. The gender-bending film starts shooting in January.