Dolly Parton has been receiving treatment for unspecified health issues concerning her immune and digestive systems, she announced Monday, saying at the same time that her postponed Las Vegas residency has been canceled.
The legendary singer and beloved pop culture icon spoke candidly about her health in an Instagram video posted Monday morning, months after she sparked health concerns late last year. She told fans she had “some good news and a little bad news” to share, leading with her treatment. “I’m responding really well to meds and treatments, and I’m improving every day,” the 80-year-old said. That was the good news.
The bad news? The “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” hitmaker said she will continue taking time away from performing live, noting that her medications and treatments “make me a little bit swimmy headed.” The singer said she doesn’t want her performances to compromise on any part of the glitzy Dolly Parton fantasy, from her elaborate costumes and signature stilettos to her “big, uh, personality” (read: her chest).
The “9 to 5” star raised concern among her fan base last fall after she pulled out from a number of scheduled appearances and performances. In late September, she missed an event at her Dollywood amusement park due to kidney stones. After that absence, she called off mulitple concerts in Las Vegas for unspecified health issues. Her younger sister Freida sparked additional concern after she said in a Facebook post she had been “up all night” praying for the singer. At the time, Freida Parton called on her sister’s fans to “to be prayer warriors and pray with me.”
Amid those concerns, Dolly Parton told fans via video that the death of her husband, Carl Dean, had taken a toll on her health. Dean died in March 2025 at age 82. She said when she finally got around to seeing her doctors, they said, “‘We need to take care of this, we need to take care of that.’” She assured fans at the time that there was “nothing major” to worry about and that cancellations were in store to ensure she can continue receiving treatment.
“I’m not ready to die yet,” Parton said in that October video.
In Monday’s video statement, Parton compared herself to a classic car that, “once restored, can be better than ever.” She likened her various health conditions to car parts that need to be replaced or tuned up: “For sure, my spark plugs need to be changed, because you know as well as I know that I can’t lose my spark.”
Then the singer, who has struggled with kidney stones, plainly laid out what has been causing her grief.
“My immune system and digestive system got all out of whack over the past couple of three years,” she said. “[Doctors are] working real hard on rebuilding and strengthening those. And hopefully I’ll be up to snuff again.”
Parton also pulled the plug on her Las Vegas residency, but said Monday she has numerous other ventures in the works: her Dollywood amusement park, a museum and hotel opening in Nashville later this year, and a Broadway musical titled “Dolly: A True Original Musical” to bow in New York in the fall or early winter.
In the final part of her video, Parton spoke about grieving her late husband. Since his death, the singer said, she has gone through a number of “firsts.” “I mean the holidays, and especially our wedding anniversary, and the day of his death … that was hard for me.”
“But I will always love him and I’ll always miss him,” she said, later telling fans they “would be surprised at how much your love and concern meant to me during that time.”
“You have been a big part of my healing.”
Throughout the video, Parton weaved her cheery demeanor and wit in with the more serious tidbits about her health and grief. She carried that through the end of the clip when she recalled a conversation with Dean about upsides of, yep, plastic surgery. After he told her she wasn’t getting any younger, she said, she answered, “Well honey, you’ve got to remember that as long as there are plastic surgeons in this world, I’m not getting any older.”
Getting serious again, Parton said that plastic surgeons can help take care of the body’s exterior, but “it’s serious business when you’re talking about internal medicine.” She concluded her video informing fans she has “great doctors” who “assure me that everything I have is treatable.”
