Dolly Parton is sharing an encouraging update on her ongoing health struggles, but it came with “a little bad news” too, she said: She is canceling her upcoming Las Vegas residency.
“The good news is: I’m responding really well to meds and treatments and I’m improving every day,” she said in a video posted to her Instagram on May 4.
“Now the bad news is: It’s going to take me a little while before I’m up to stage performance level because some of the meds and treatments make me a little bit ‘swimmy’ headed, as my grandma used to say,” Parton said in the video.
The 80-year-old went on to compare herself to “an old classic car that once restored can be better than ever.”
“But when they raised the hood on this old antique, they realized that I need to rebuild my engine and that my transmission is slipping, my oil pan is leaking and my muffler’s busted and my shocks and pistons need to be replaced,” she said.
More specifically, Parton said she has “always had problems” with kidney stones.
“Lord, they dig more stones out of me a year than the rock quarry in Rockwood, Tennessee,” she joked. “But seriously, my immune system and my digestive system got all out of whack over the past couple three years, and they’re working real hard on rebuilding and strengthening those. And hopefully, I’ll be up to snuff again soon.”
She did not share further details on her health struggles.
Parton said she’s trying to keep everything “light and airy” and has been keeping busy working on several professional projects as she navigates her health challenges.
The singer previously had to postpone her Vegas concerts in September 2025 as she focused on her health.
“On a more serious note, I’m truly sorry that I’m going to miss all of you that had tickets to see me in Las Vegas,” she said.
During her video message, Parton also thanked her fans for their support after her husband, Carl Dean, died in 2025.
“I will always love him, and I’ll always miss him, but you would be surprised at how much your love and concern meant to me during that time,” she said.
At the end of her video message, Parton said she has “great doctors” and is “doing really well.”
“And they assure me that everything I have is treatable. So I’m going with that,” she said.