Brit Turner, founding member of the country rock band Blackberry Smoke, has died at the age of 57.
The band took to Instagram to announce the devastating news. “It is with the deepest pain that we inform everyone that our brother, Brit Turner, has left this life,” the message reads.
“If you had the privilege of knowing Brit on any level, you would know that she was the most caring, empathetic, driven and endearing person anyone could ever hope to meet.”
While describing Turner as Blackberry Smoke’s true north, the band revealed that he had been battling glioblastoma since the fall of 2022. He had fought every day since then.
“We ask for prayers for his family and brothers in the band. More information on arrangements will be available soon. Thank you to everyone who has supported and been there for Brit and his family during this fight.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, glioblastoma is a type of cancer that begins in astrocytes, which support nerve cells. This type of cancer can form in the brain or spinal cord.
Symptoms include constantly worsening headaches, nausea and vomiting, blurred or double vision, and seizures. “Glioblastoma can occur at any age. But it tends to occur more frequently in older adults and more frequently in men.”
There is currently no cure for glioblastoma. Treatments are used to slow the growth of the cancer and reduce symptoms.
Brit Turner co-founded the band with Charlie Starr, Paul Jackson, Brandon Still and her brother, Richard Turner in 2000. The group released their first album. Bad luck is not a crime in 2003.
Despite his treatments and his nearly two-year battle with glioblastoma, Turner remained loyal to the band.
Brit Turner’s daughter was previously diagnosed with cancer
During an interview with James Calemine in early 2022, Brit Turner opened up about her daughter Lana Turner’s stage 4 neuroblastoma diagnosis.
“It was absolutely heartbreaking,” Turner explained. “When we were in the hospital with my daughter we saw so much shit, it was overwhelming. It was very heavy. You hear that expression that there is always someone who has it worse than you, it is very true.”
The experience led the band to want to raise money to fight childhood cancer. “If your son gets sick, you will rob banks. In children’s hospitals there are many people willing to help. We saw so many people that a single gas card meant a lot to them. This whole experience was terrifying. “We literally saw children die.”
Speaking about the initial symptoms her daughter experienced, Brit Turner said: “What happened was she said her leg hurt and she was two, so she couldn’t really articulate what was going on, but she was holding her thigh.” “.
“We go to get an x-ray and they say, oh, you just sprained your knee. I said she’s not holding her knee! He was being an overprotective father and I’m happy to be that. They sent us on our way with an Ace bandage.”
Days later, she noticed that her daughter didn’t want to walk at all. She decided to take her back to the doctor, where she had blood tests done. “They did a blood test and basically said you have to go to the Scottish Rite right now. The doctors said something is very wrong with his blood.”
“She had just turned 3 at the time. They said she definitely has cancer. We just don’t know what she is yet. So, we had 5 shows left. “We were scheduled to play 25 shows in a row without a single night off.”
After years of battling the disease, Brit Turner’s family received the surprising news that Lana’s cancer has gone into remission.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn