Patti Scialfa, Springsteen’s Wife & Bandmate, Reveals Cancer Diagnosis

FILE - Musician Bruce Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa exit the stage door after the opening night performance of "Springsteen On Broadway" at the Walter Kerr Theatre in New York, Oct. 12, 2017. AP Photo/Evan Agostini via Invision, File 

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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.—Patti Scialfa, Bruce Springsteen’s wife and E Street bandmate, says she has been dealing with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer.

In a documentary about the band that premiered Sunday, the 71-year-old Scialfa said she was diagnosed in 2018 with the disease.

The guitarist said the condition has led her to curtail touring with the band.

“This affects my immune system, so I have to be careful what I choose to do and where I choose to go,” she said in the film, titled “Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.”

“Every once in a while, I come to a show or two and I can sing a few songs on stage, and that’s been a treat,“ she said. ”That’s the new normal for me right now, and I’m OK with that.”

A spokesman for Scialfa said Monday no additional information on her condition would be released, including whether she is currently being treated for the disease.

She did not attend the film’s premiere in Toronto.

Scialfa has been a member of the E Street Band since 1984, and married Springsteen in 1991. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. She has also performed as a solo artist.

Springsteen had to postpone some tour dates over the last two years due to peptic ulcer disease and vocal issues. He is scheduled to play a music festival in Asbury Park, the Jersey Shore town intimately associated with his music, on Sept. 15.

By Wayne Parry