Nolan sister given ‘amazing early Christmas present’ amid cancer treatment

Linda Nolan has shared the “amazing” news that her brain tumours have shrunk.

The singer, 64, part of the family pop group The Nolans, is being treated for cancer and in March revealed it had spread to her brain, impacting her balance and leaving her in need of a wheelchair.

She told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “It’s amazing… When we went in, I knew straight away that it was good news by the look on my consultant’s face.

“He said that the scans were good – the MRI and the CT scan – and that there is shrinkage with the tumours.

“I wanted to put my arms around him and kiss him but I thought they might throw me out.”

Nolan said the news is “absolutely” an early Christmas present, adding: “I didn’t think I’d make Christmas.

“I was hoping to make the birth of my nephew, who was born at the end of July, and then I was thinking, ‘How many more milestones will I make?’

“And at the moment, I feel good. I’ve got a little bit of pain but I was walking about yesterday; we went to the beautiful garden centre and I was having a walk around to keep moving. They said, ‘Don’t sit down all the time or nothing will work’, and I just looked and thought, ‘How lucky I am.’

“After nine months and getting the worst possible news, having a great time with my sisters and now it’s all excitement for Christmas.”

Discussing the joy she gets from spending time with her sisters – Loose Women star Coleen, Maureen, and Anne – Nolan said: “I wake up and think, ‘Oh, another day to make memories’.

“I don’t wake up thinking, ‘It’s another day closer’, and that helps me.

“Sometimes I have to drag myself out of bed because lying there… just makes it worse… dip down into a depression.”

Nolan also shared her happiness at meeting Donny Osmond backstage at a gig, having been a fan of the singer since she was 13.

Donny Osmond asked how Nolan is when the pair met backstage (PA)PA Archive/PA Images - Ian West

She said: “He’s always charming. He asked me how I was. He knows that I’ve been ill and everything and he made an old woman very happy.”

Nolan’s sister Anne, whom she joined on TV series The Nolans Go Cruising, was diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time three years ago. She is now cancer-free.

Coleen said in July she had been diagnosed with skin cancer.

Bernie died of breast cancer in 2013 aged 52.