Celine Dion, the winner of the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest for Switzerland, has announced that she is putting her music career on an indefinite hiatus.

In a press statement released on the singer’s website, she said she is taking the time off following a number of challenging issues that have hit her and her family.

I want to devote every ounce of my strength and energy to my husband’s healing, and to do so, it’s important for me to dedicate this time to him and to our children. I also want to apologise to all my fans everywhere, for inconveniencing them, and I thank them so much for their love and support.

Her husband, René Angélil, had previously had a cancerous tumour removed in December and Dion herself has been fighting an illness that has caused inflammation in her throat muscles.

As a result she had had to put an immediate stop to her show at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, where she has been performing since 2011, as well as a major tour of Asia that was due to take place towards the end of this year.

Celine’s win at the Eurovision Song Contest was Switzerland’s second and latest win in the competition. Her entry Ne partez pas sans moi edged out the United Kingdom’s Scott Fitzgerald to claim victory.

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