Nolan family hit by sad cancer news months after death of Linda Nolan

The Nolan family lost Linda Nolan on 15 January 2025, 12 years after the death of her elder sister, Bernadette ‘Bernie’ Nolan.

Both Linda and Bernie had been diagnosed with cancer, and sisters Anne and Coleen have both had their own battles with the condition. However, just weeks after Linda sadly passed away, the family’s brother, Brian, revealed that he has now been diagnosed with stage 2 prostate cancer.

Speaking to The Mirror, Brian explained that he spoke to his doctor after noticing an increase in the number of times he was urinating in a day. “I just want cancer to leave us alone,” he told the publication.

While Brian opened up about his diagnosis months after the death of his sister, he actually received the diagnosis just three days after she passed.

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He explained: “You’re never ready for somebody to say: ‘Yes, you’ve got cancer.’ It’s like being hit by a train. You start plunging into the abyss of: ‘I’m going to die.’ The urologist stood up and said, ‘We’re going to treat this and we’re going to cure this.’

“I’m focusing on that and hope to God I can have the courage my sisters had.”

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Brian revealed that he initially hid his diagnosis from his family, due to Linda’s deteriorating health, relying on his “rock” of a wife, Anne.

He also revealed that he was soon going to undergo surgery in order to have his prostate removed and that he would be campaigning for more awareness of the condition.

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The NHS website says that the main symptoms of the illness are an increased need to urinate, straining while you urinate, and blood in your urine.

Treatment isn’t always immediate as prostate cancer progresses very slowly, and some doctors advise “active surveillance.” However, it can be treated either by surgically removing the prostate or through radiotherapy.

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Coleen also spoke to the publication following her brother’s diagnosis. Sharing her initial reaction to the news, she said: “I couldn’t speak. I went completely numb, and about an hour later, I wanted to punch walls and scream.”

“In our family, cancer’s just there, but he was so positive, and I’m just so proud of him. We’re a family that treats everything with as much humour as possible, and we go, ‘OK, we can face this together.’ That’s what we’ll do.”

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While Brian was never a member of the Nolan Sisters, he worked closely with his sisters in a behind-the-scenes role.