“My luck hasn’t been very good lately,” said Celine Dion who was looking forward to celebrating her 50th birthday with a special performance at Las Vegas’ Colosseum on March 30. Sadly, her plans changed due to a recent health crisis that makes it difficult for her to sing. Celine was forced to cancel dates in March and April. “I’ve been so looking forward to doing my shows again and this happens!” she exclaimed.

For more than a year, “Celine has been dealing with a condition in her middle ear known as patulous eustachian tube, which causes hearing irregularities and makes it extremely difficult to sing,” her rep said in a statement. Unfortunately, the eardrops she’d been using stopped working, and now the only way to correct the problem is surgery. “It sounds like she’s falling apart but it’s not as bad as it seems,” an insider exclusively told Closer Weekly.

“It’s been a very tough few months for her but she’s been seeing the best ear, nose, and throat specialists for everything,” the source added. In January, Celine canceled two shows due to a bad cold, which was unrelated to her ongoing ear condition, but may have made the problem worse. “Sometimes when she sings she can hear her own voice echoing in her ear. It’s very frustrating for her,” the insider shared.

Not being there for her fans frustrates Celine even more. “She was really upset to not only miss her 50th birthday show but to cancel shows and disappoint fans,” another source said. “She doesn’t ever want to let them down. It bothers her more than most people would know.” Celine wants to keep her fans happy more than ever since they’ve been a comfort to her as she mourned the 2016 death of her husband, René Angélil.

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Celine and her late husband, René.

Still, her “uncommon condition” is something she needs to address, said Dr. Emil Ganjian, an ear, nose, and throat specialist with NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola, NY, who is not treating Celine. “Every time you swallow, blow your nose, all the air makes its way through the eustachian tube and goes into the ear,” he explained. “It gives people a sensation of a clogged ear.” The surgery “is basically the only option,” said the insider. And it likely will involve “filler material” being injected around the opening of her ear tube, noted Dr. Ganjian.

It should be quick and Celine will know right away if it works. Dr. Ganjian said there’s about an 80 percent success rate. Afterward, she has time to recover before returning to the stage on May 22. She’ll spend those days with sons René-Charles, 17, and twins Eddy and Nelson, 7. Will she have a belated birthday celebration after her surgery? “I’m not a birthday girl,” Celine admitted. “I’d rather be doing a show.” But in the meantime, “She’s keeping a positive attitude,” said the insider. And happily, it sounds like her voice will go on.

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Celine and her son René.

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