Aretha Franklin, universally dubbed the ‘Queen of Soul,’ has been diagnosed with cancer according to several reports in the American media. Although undergoing recent successful surgery for an unspecified illness, reports claim that a family member familiar with the situation has confirmed she has pancreatic cancer; a particularly nasty form of the disease from which remission is rare. After her recent surgery Franklin released a statement saying “God is still in controI. I had superb doctors and nurses who were blessed by all the prayers of the city and the country.”

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