Sick Of It All Vocalist Reveals Cancer Diagnosis, Fans Raise Over $200,000 In GoFundMe Campaign

American hardcore punk band Sick Of It All were forced to cancel their forthcoming European tour a few days ago, with lead vocalist Lou Koller revealing that he’s been diagnosed with cancer and needs time to recover.

Responding to fan speculation about the cancelled tour, Koller took to Instagram and said in a video that doctors “found a tumour in my oesophagus that goes into my stomach”, and he’ll need treatment, thereby cancelling the European tour dates.

Adding that he has the “full support of the band,” who encouraged him to “forget the tour” and only focus on getting healthy, Koller continued, “We’re not happy about it, seriously.

“Like I said, they’re all behind me staying home and us staying home. We really feel sorry. I feel sorry for the fans. All of our crew was banking on [the July European tour]; we were all gonna have another fun summer together, all the promoters. But everyone who knows has been very supportive, and now everybody knows.”

He concluded, “So, that’s the reason. No other reason you heard is the truth. This is the truth. So yeah, just thanks for all your support. Hopefully, we beat this thing, and see you at the end of the summer or maybe the winter. Take care.”

Following Lou’s announcement, his brother and Sick Of It All guitarist, Pete, launched a GoFundMe fundraising campaign for Lou, raising more than $200,000 in just three days.

In the fundraiser description, Pete shared that Lou has been diagnosed with “adenocarcinoma cancer”.

Adding that the band won’t be touring “until Lou beats this and recovered,” Pete wrote that touring is the “lifeline” for Sick Of It All and said any help for his brother would be “greatly appreciated.”

Sick Of It All fans aren’t the only ones who have donated to the GoFundMe. Bands in the scene, including Dropkick Murphys, Hot Water Music, Snapcase, Rancid, and AFI, have also made significant donations to the fundraiser.

The Music wishes Lou well as he embarks on his recovery journey.

In January and February, Sick Of It All toured Australia, playing gigs in Adelaide, Melbourne, Frankston, Newcastle, Sydney, and Brisbane.

Embedded Content

Embedded Content

Embedded Content

Written by TheMusic.com.au