Patti Scialfa, Bruce Springsteen's wife and bandmate, reveals cancer diagnosis: What is multiple myeloma?

(NEXSTAR) – Patti Scialfa, Bruce Springsteen’s wife and a longtime member of the E Street Band, has revealed in a new documentary that she was diagnosed with blood cancer in 2018, outlets including Variety and Rolling Stone are reporting.

The documentary, “Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band,” premiered Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival. It will be released on Hulu and Disney+ on Oct. 25, 2024.

“This affects my immune system, so I have to be careful what I choose to do and where I choose to go,” Scialfa, who stepped back from touring over the past several years, explains in “Road Diary,” per Variety.

“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. That’s the new normal for me right now, and I’m OK with that.”

Scialfa, 71, reportedly identified the cancer as multiple myeloma, which is a cancer that affects white blood cells — plasma cells, specifically — inside bone marrow, causing them to produce abnormal proteins rather than “make helpful antibodies” like those produced by healthy white blood cells, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The cause or causes of multiple myeloma are unclear, though it’s more common in older people, males, Black people and overweight or obese people, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says. People with a family history of the disease are also more at-risk, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Symptoms may include bone pain, brittle bones, weakness in the limbs, feeling tired, frequent urination and loss of appetite, among others. Those with multiple myeloma might also report no symptoms at all, but blood or urine tests may show elevated levels of the abnormal proteins.

There is no cure for multiple myeloma. Treatment options include medicines, immunotherapies, chemotherapy, radiation and bone marrow transplants, the Mayo Clinic notes. These treatments may depend on the severity and stage of the cancer.

The five-year survival rate, according to the American Cancer Society, is estimated at 60%, meaning that those diagnosed with multiple myeloma “are, on average, about 60% as likely as people who don’t have that cancer to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed.” A doctor who spoke with USA Today in 2023, however, said advancements in treatment are making great strides toward lengthening life expectancies, and even said a cure could be five to ten years away.

The “Road Diary” documentary does not indicate whether Scialfa was in remission or still being treated, The New York Times reported.

Scialfa, who has also released multiple solo albums, joined the E Street Band in 1984. Together with Springsteen, her husband since 1991, she regularly toured with the group through 2016.

Scialfa later hinted at health problems in a 2020 interview with Rolling Stone, though she did not disclose details of her diagnosis.

“I’m a bit high-risk because of something I have in my health. My children are very cautious,” she said during the coronavirus pandemic.