NEW ORDER'S GILLIAN GILBERT DISCLOSES CANCER DIAGNOSIS

Gillian Gilbert, keyboardist with New Order, has said on Instagram that she is "living with cancer", clarifying comments made by her husband and bandmate, drummer Stephen Morris, in an interview with Rolling Stone. Morris had told the magazine he had "a bit of a health problem at the minute, which precludes leaving the country for any length of time... it's pretty serious", prompting fans to believe he was seriously ill. Gilbert wrote that the remarks had been "misinterpreted" and that Morris is "well", adding: "It is in fact me, who like many other people, is living with cancer." She thanked fans for their "kind words and well wishes" and asked for privacy "as I continue with my treatment".

New Order formed after Joy Division disbanded following the death of frontman Ian Curtis in 1980, with Morris, singer Bernard Sumner and bassist Peter Hook touring as a trio before recruiting Gilbert on keyboards and guitar. She performed and co-wrote on every New Order album from their debut, Movement, to 2001's Get Ready, before taking around a decade away from the band to care for her and Morris's children, including daughter Grace, who became physically disabled after an illness. Gilbert later returned to the touring lineup and contributed to the band's most recent album, 2015's Music Complete. She was successfully treated for breast cancer in 2007. New Order have had seven UK top ten singles and two UK number one albums, including tracks such as "Blue Monday", "Temptation" and "True Faith".

New Order are scheduled to tour South America in November. One report said Gilbert and Morris would be replaced by touring musicians for those dates, while another listed the current lineup as Sumner, Morris, Gilbert, guitarist Phil Cunningham and bassist Tom Chapman. Gilbert has not given further detail on her diagnosis or treatment. She said she and Morris were "enormously grateful" for the support they had received.