Celine Dion’s sister says ‘There’s Little We Can Do’ to ‘alleviate’ singer’s pain
ByJessica Goodman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Celine Dion update: Celine Dion’s sister says ‘There’s Little We Can Do’ to ‘alleviate’ singer’s pain. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
ByJessica Goodman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Celine Dion’s sister says that the singer is continuing to battle Stiff-Person Syndrome which caused her to stop her live performances over the last year.
“It’s an illness we know so little about,” Dion’s sister, Claudette Dion, said in an interview with Hello! Canada per Variety.
“There’s little we can do to support her, to alleviate her pain,” Claudette Dion continued, according to Variety. “We’re crossing our fingers that researchers will find a remedy for this awful illness.”
The illness forced Dion, 55, to stop performing and has led her to stay out of the public eye, the Los Angeles Times reported.
“There are spasms — they’re impossible to control,” Claudette Dion said, according to the LA Times. “You know people who often jump up in the night because of a cramp in the leg or the calf? It’s a bit like that, but in all muscles. There’s little we can do to support her, to alleviate her pain.”
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke says that Stiff-Person Syndrome is “a progressive disorder that affects the brain and the spinal cord,” according to Variety. Symptoms include rigidity or spasms. This can affect the entire body, muscle enlargement and could make walking or moving difficult. There is reportedly no cure.
“We’re crossing our fingers that researchers will find a remedy for this awful illness,” Claudette Dion said, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Dion revealed she was diagnosed with the disorder in December 2022, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“While we’re still learning about this rare condition, we now know this is what’s been causing all of the spasms that I’ve been having,” Dion said in a video posted on Instagram last winter, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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Photos: Celine Dion through the years Here are some memorable photos of singer Celine Dion through the years. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 1996: A general view of the festivities going on during the Opening Ceremony of the 1996 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Atlanta on Aug. 19, 1996. (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 1997: Celine Dion and Smokey Robinson at the third annual International Achievement in Arts Awards on Sept. 28, 1997, in Beverly Hills, California. (Albert Ortega/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 1999: Celine Dion arrives at the 71st Academy Awards on March 21, 1999, in Los Angeles. (Liaison Agency/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2000: Celine Dion appears at the Nabisco Championship Golf Tournament on March 26, 2000, in Rancho Mirage, California. (Tom Hauck/Allsport/Online USA, Inc./Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2001: Singer Celine Dion holds her 6-month-old baby, Rene-Charles, as she and her husband Rene Angelil pose for fans and photographers July 25, 2001, at the chapel of the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec, for the baptism of their baby boy. (Lyle Stafford/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2002: Singer Celine Dion and husband Rene Angelil attend Sony Music Entertainment's party at Morton's Restaurant on February 27, 2002, in Los Angeles. (Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2003: Singer Celine Dion and dancers rehearse for the "Celine Dion - A New Day" concert at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (Tomasz Rossa/CDA Productions (Las Vegas) Inc., 2003 via Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2004: Singer Celine Dion gets a kiss from husband Rene Angelil at a ceremony honoring her with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on January 6, 2004, in Hollywood, California. (Vince Bucci/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2005: Singer Celine Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angelil, walk from a news conference to a ceremony marking the opening of the 26-story, 949-room Augustus Tower at Caesars Palace September 1, 2005, in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2006: Singer Celine Dion and her husband and manager, Rene Angelil, pose after Dion performed at the 41st annual Labor Day Telethon to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association at the South Coast Hotel & Casino on September 3, 2006, in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2007: Singer Celine Dion is embraced by her husband and manager, Rene Angelil, and their son, Rene-Charles Angelil, after the final performance of her show "A New Day ..." at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace on December 15, 2007, in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images for AEG Live/Concerts West)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2009: In this handout photo provided by Disney, Grammy Award-winning singer Celine Dion performs "O' Come All Ye Faithful" at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa hotel on December 4, 2009, in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, while taping the "Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade" holiday TV special. (Matt Stroshane/Disney via Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2010: Singer Celine Dion backstage during the 52nd annual Grammy Awards held at Staples Center on January 31, 2010, in Los Angeles. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2011: Singer Celine Dion (right) and manager Rene Angelil arrive at the 83rd annual Academy Awards held at the Kodak Theatre on February 27, 2011, in Hollywood, California. (Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2012: Celine Dion performs during BAMBI Awards 2012 at the Stadthalle Duesseldorf on November 22, 2012, in Duesseldorf, Germany. (Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2013: Celine Dion poses in the press room during the 2013 Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 19, 2013, in Las Vegas. (Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2015: Singer Celine Dion performs at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace as she resumes her residency on August 27, 2015, in Las Vegas. The show had been on hiatus since August 2014 when Dion stopped performing to care for her ailing husband Rene Angelil. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2016: Singer Celine Dion performs onstage during the 2016 Billboard Music Awards at T-Mobile Arena on May 22, 2016, in Las Vegas. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2017: Celine Dion attends the "Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garcons: Art of the In-Between" Costume Institute Gala at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1, 2017, in New York City. (Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2019: Celine Dion attends the 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2019, in New York City. (Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Photos: Celine Dion through the years 2020: In this screengrab, Celine Dion performs during "One World: Together at Home" presented by Global Citizen on April, 18, 2020. (Getty Images/Getty Images for Global Citizen)