Veteran Canadian singer Celine Dion is facing a challenging health battle with Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), a progressive and incurable neurological disorder. The condition causes the body to attack its own nerve cells, impacting mobility severely. Celine's sister Claudette Dion while speaking to 7 Jours, via translation from French said: "She doesn't have control over her muscles. What breaks my heart is that she's always been disciplined. She's always worked hard. Our mother always told her, 'You're going to do it well, you're going to do it properly.'" "It's true that in both our dreams and hers, the goal is to return to the stage. In what capacity? I don't know." She noted.
Claudette added: 'The vocal cords are muscles, and the heart is also a muscle. This is what comes to get me. Because it's 1 out of a million cases, the scientists haven't done that much research because it didn't affect that many people.'
Celine's family charity, Fondation Maman Dion, has been busy with messages of support for the star.
Claudette said: 'Some people have lost hope because it's all illness that isn't well known. If only you knew the number of phone calls the Foundation gets about Celine! People tell us they love her and they're praying for her. She gets so many messages, presents, and blessed crucifixes.'
In May, Celine, 55, canceled her Courage World Tour due to the rare neurological disorder, which can cause painful muscle spasms and stiffness.
"I'm so sorry to disappoint all of you once again," the 55-year-old wrote on Instagram at the time. "I'm working really hard to build back my strength, but touring can be very difficult even when you're 100%. It's not fair to you to keep postponing the shows, and even though it breaks my heart, it's best that we cancel everything now until I'm really ready to be back on stage again."
People who suffer from SPS can turn sufferers into 'human statues,' leaving them struggling to walk or talk.
The condition, which is believed to affect only one in a million people, can also lead to spasms that generate enough force to fracture bone.
Usually, patients are diagnosed around ages 30-50, and they are mostly women.
