Tom Parker: Wanted singer's brain tumor is now stable

The Wanted’s Tom Parker said he was “over the moon” that his brain tumor was brought “under control”.

The singer revealed in October 2020 that he had been diagnosed with inoperable and terminal cancer.

Parker posted an update on his condition on Wednesday, featuring a photo of himself smiling with his wife Kelsey Hardwick and their two children.

“I’m sitting here with tears in my eyes. We have my brain tumor under control,” he said.

“Such a mix of emotions. We couldn’t really ask for more at this point.”

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Although the tumor is “stable,” that doesn’t mean Parker is now cancer-free.

‘Don’t consume my life’

Last month, Parker appeared in Channel 4’s Stand Up To Cancer event, which raised £ 31,169,340.

Multimedia caption,

Tom Parker of The Wanted: “Live today as if it were the last”

The fundraiser included Ed Sheeran, Sigrid, Liam Payne and McFly, as well as the first appearance in more than seven years of The Wanted.

Prior to the concert, Parker told BBC Breakfast that he refused to let cancer dominate his life.

“It’s not like I’m ignoring cancer, I just don’t want to pay any attention to it,” he said.

“The more attention you pay him, the more he consumes your life and I don’t want to consume my life.”

Wanted reunite for Tom Parker’s cancer concert
The Wanted star was diagnosed with a brain tumor
Tom Parker says the tumor has “shrunk significantly”

‘I was shocked’

The singer was tested last year after suffering unexplained seizures.

Describing the moment of his diagnosis at the time, Parker recalled: “They pulled the curtain around my bed and said, ‘It’s a brain tumor.’

“All I could think of was, ‘[expletive] hell!’ I was shocked.

“It’s stage 4 glioblastoma and they said it’s terminal. It was a lot to deal with on my own. I haven’t worked it out yet.”

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption,

The Wanted (LR: Jay McGuinnes, Nathan Sykes, Max George, Siva Kaneswaran and Tom Parker) scored hits on both sides of the Atlantic

In January, Parker said on Instagram there had been a “significant reduction” in the size of her tumor.

Her condition improved during 2021 and she continued to share updates about her treatment on social media.

The 33-year-old rose to fame in early 2010 as a fifth of The Wanted, hitting number one with the singles All Time Low and Glad You Came.

Since they went on hiatus in 2014, he played Danny Zuko in a touring production of Grease and made it to the semifinals of Celebrity Masterchef.

He married actress Kelsey Hardwick in 2018. The couple have two children, Aurelia and Bodhi, who were born weeks after Parker found out he had cancer.

What is glioblastoma?

Glioblastoma is the most common type of brain tumor
It is the most aggressive form of adult brain tumor and is often resistant to treatment
The variety of cells in a glioblastoma is believed to be one of the reasons it is so difficult to treat because current medications are unable to effectively target all types of cancer cells.
As with most brain tumors, the cause of glioblastoma is not known

Source: Charity for brain tumor