Mick Jagger's brother reveals singer was 'lucky to be alive' because heart condition was detected during a routine scan
Mick Jagger recently revealed to his fans that he underwent heart valve surgery and was recovering well. However, his younger brother, Chris Jagger believes that the singer was lucky to be alive since the problem was spotted during an early stage. “Mick is doing OK. I spoke to him... he’s good. It just showed up on a scan so it could happen to anybody, you know," he said, as reported by The Sun.
The heart condition with which the Rolling Stones frontman was diagnosed with was quite similar to the one that took the life of The Clash star Joe Strummer. The singer was just 50 at the time of his death. "It happened to Joe. He came back from walking the dogs and his wife found him collapsed on the sofa. He had this valve problem," he continued. “His father died from it. It was hereditary. With Mick, it came on a check-up."
Chris even advised others to have a regular checkup, especially when someone is in their 70's. “That is why when you get to a certain age they want to check for this, check for that. You get to 70, you got to be careful, you know." While Mick is currently resting and trying to recover quickly, Chris believes that the health scare might motivate him to take things slowly when it came to his work. He also referred to the 'touring pressure' his brother was under.
As per Billboard, Mick did not undergo any complications during the heart valve replacement surgery and was surrounded by nurses monitoring him closely if at all any complications were to rise after the procedure was completed. Luckily for Mick, since the heart condition was detected in the early stage, the singer was able to avoid major surgery.
The doctors repaired the defective heart valve using a catheter that accesses a major artery. The entire procedure was done without having to open the chest. Prior to Mick's procedure, the band had rescheduled their North American 'No Filter Tour' so that the singer could undergo the surgery without any disturbance and could take his time to make a full recovery. "Mick Jagger has been advised by doctors that he cannot go on tour at this time as he needs medical treatment," the band said in a statement.
Mick even took to his Instagram to personally apologize to fans for canceling the show. "I'm so sorry to all our fans in America & Canada with tickets. I really hate letting you down like this. I'm devastated for having to postpone the tour but I will be working very hard to be back on stage as soon as I can. Once again, huge apologies to everyone," he wrote. While the singer is still under care, it is believed that the singer will be getting back on stage by summer.
Mick later took to Twitter to thank his fans for all the support that poured in for him. "Thank you, everyone, for all your messages of support, I’m feeling much better now and on the mend - and also a huge thank you to all the hospital staff for doing a superb job," he tweeted.