Charles Kelley opened up about a recent cancer diagnosis in a health update on Tuesday (September 29).

The singer-songwriter and Lady A artist, 45, sat beside his wife, Cassie Kelley, 43, in a clip the couple shared on Instagram. Charles explained in the update that “random rib fractures” led his doctor to recommend blood tests, which uncovered a “rare” blood cancer called multiple myeloma.

“Hey everybody, just wanted to give a quick update on some health issues I’m dealing with,” Charles said. “I had a couple random rib fractures that happened, which sparked, you know, my doctor and to have me do several different blood tests. And one of the last blood tests we did, they found a blood cancer in there called multiple myeloma, and it’s rare. But I’m young, I feel healthy, and the treatments, I will say, have just come so far, even in the past five years that life expectancy far exceeds what it used to be.

“I feel really hopeful. I really do,” he continued. “We have a friend going through this right now, and she’s been sharing some of her journey. She’s about two months ahead of me on this. And it really, you know, it helped me so much watching that.”

Charles also said he’s taking perspectives in his cancer journey similar to those in his sobriety journey. The country star first opened up about his sobriety journey in August 2022, when he and Lady A bandmates Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood opted to postpone their tour to support him.

In the clip he and his wife shared on Tuesday, Charles said, “just getting this stuff off your chest is so freeing, and it takes the power away from it a little bit. We wanted to let y’all know what was going on. But we’re gonna get through it. In sobriety, it’s all about one day at a time, and that we’re not in control. So, that’s the way we’re looking at it.

“Right now, I feel great,” he said. “We’ve got a new record coming out soon with Lady A, and then we got Christmas shows. You know, the first six months of treatment, I believe, is not going be too super invasive. I can still work. I think physically I will feel like myself. I’ll have tough days, but you know, I want to keep working. Even going out last weekend, even after knowing the news, I was like, ‘this is where I belong.’ I need to be happy and doing what I love to do, and spending and soaking up as much time with my family as I can, as well. But I’m hopeful. I really am. But we just wanted to let y’all know, and I’ll try to let you in when I feel like it’s appropriate throughout the journey. It’s just another hurdle, and I feel confident that we’re gonna get through it.”

Cassie added that she’s “thankful for a great care team” in Nashville. She and Charles shared a kiss, and he closed the video by saying, “we got this.”

Cassie shared the “hard news” on her Instagram story. She shared on another slide, as she got ready to head to a fundraising event for St. Jude, that it’s been “a really hard season. …This diagnosis is pretty new, so we are just adjusting to it as a family.” Cassie said the family aims to keep their routines as much as possible, especially for their children. She and Charles are parents to sons Ward Charles, 10, and Archer Lancaster, who turned 1 this month. She also expressed the importance of community, prayers, and thanked people for their supportive messages.

Haywood wrote in the comments that he’s “covering you in prayer brother. Love y’all. We’re all here for you!” Scott wrote that Charles and Cassie are “the strongest duo right there! Love y’all so much! You’ve got this! ❤️” Country stars Jake Owen, Dan + Shay’s Shay Mooney, Martina McBride and others shared supportive messages of their own. Watch the announcement here:

Dave Hovel