Eddie Spaghetti, the frontman and bassist for Seattle-bred punk-and-roll quartet Supersuckers, has been diagnosed with throat cancer.
A statement from Spaghetti's wife Jessika Daly confirmed that the musician was recently told by doctors that he has stage 3 oropharynx cancer, which is located at the back of the throat, by the tongue and tonsils. This was discovered during a biopsy in New York City, after Spaghetti had initially believed he had a swollen lymph node in his neck. A surgery is set to take place by the end of the month.
Daly explained: "After a persistent, what we believed to be allergy related, swollen lymph node in his neck turned up squamous cell carcinoma while our family was traveling across the country on a year long journey, we were forced to seek an immediate Pet-scan in L.A. (where the band was meeting to start a tour). Knowing you have cancer cells in a neck mass is one thing, hearing that they need to scan your whole body to find out where it originated was too much for this guy."
While Supersuckers performed last night (June 18) at Seattle's Tractor Tavern, the upcoming surgery on June 29 has forced the band to cancel their European summer tour, which was to start next week. Spaghetti will go through radiation treatment for six weeks this summer.
The band have set up a fundraising site to help pay medical bills, as Daly noted, "There will be no income after the last show before Eddie's surgery." Spaghetti and Daly also have three kids to support. So far, they've raised over $12,000 USD of their $50,000 goal.
If you'd like to show your support for the Supersuckers frontman, you can find out more info on how to help over here.
Spaghetti is the founding bassist of Supersuckers, having helped start the band in 1988. Following the departure of original vocalist Eric Martin, Spaghetti took over on the mic. The band's most recent LP is last year's Get the Hell.
At last night's show in Seattle, Supersuckers were also joined by surprise guest Eddie Vedder for a cover rendition of the Ramones' "I Believe in Miracles." You can watch some fan footage below.
A statement from Spaghetti's wife Jessika Daly confirmed that the musician was recently told by doctors that he has stage 3 oropharynx cancer, which is located at the back of the throat, by the tongue and tonsils. This was discovered during a biopsy in New York City, after Spaghetti had initially believed he had a swollen lymph node in his neck. A surgery is set to take place by the end of the month.
Daly explained: "After a persistent, what we believed to be allergy related, swollen lymph node in his neck turned up squamous cell carcinoma while our family was traveling across the country on a year long journey, we were forced to seek an immediate Pet-scan in L.A. (where the band was meeting to start a tour). Knowing you have cancer cells in a neck mass is one thing, hearing that they need to scan your whole body to find out where it originated was too much for this guy."
While Supersuckers performed last night (June 18) at Seattle's Tractor Tavern, the upcoming surgery on June 29 has forced the band to cancel their European summer tour, which was to start next week. Spaghetti will go through radiation treatment for six weeks this summer.
The band have set up a fundraising site to help pay medical bills, as Daly noted, "There will be no income after the last show before Eddie's surgery." Spaghetti and Daly also have three kids to support. So far, they've raised over $12,000 USD of their $50,000 goal.
If you'd like to show your support for the Supersuckers frontman, you can find out more info on how to help over here.
Spaghetti is the founding bassist of Supersuckers, having helped start the band in 1988. Following the departure of original vocalist Eric Martin, Spaghetti took over on the mic. The band's most recent LP is last year's Get the Hell.
At last night's show in Seattle, Supersuckers were also joined by surprise guest Eddie Vedder for a cover rendition of the Ramones' "I Believe in Miracles." You can watch some fan footage below.
