Ed Sheeran paid medical bills for The Wanted's Tom Parker before his tragic death
16 May 2022, 11:28 | Updated: 16 May 2022, 13:23
Tom Parker tragically died in March at the age of just 33.
The member of boyband The Wanted announced he had been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in October 2020.
After a long and courageous 18-month battle against brain cancer, he sadly succumbed to the disease.
At the time his wife Kelsey posted on her Instagram page: “It is with the heaviest of hearts that we confirm Tom passed away peacefully earlier today with all of his family by his side."
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It was a dreadful loss for the pop music world, and more importantly the singer's wife and children he left behind.
But all the way throughout his struggle, the pop music world was there by his side fighting alongside him, after it was revealed that Ed Sheeran helped to pay his medical bills.
On 26th May, Tom Parker's posthumous autobiography, Hope, is set for release. In his book, Parker reveals that Sheeran helped pay for some of his medical bills while undergoing treatment for the cancer.
“Pretty much from the moment I was diagnosed, Ed Sheeran reached out to me with an offer to do anything he could to help,” his autobiography confirms, in passages that were revealed this weekend.
With typical humility, Sheeran wanted to keep his donations private, and Parker wrote that the ‘Shape Of You’ and 'Bad Habits' hitmaker will “probably be mad” that he’s revealing how he “helped out” with his medical bills.
He also called Ed "a very special man" as he sought out other treatment options alongside private immunotherapy.
“He didn’t need to do any of that, but my wife Kelsey and I are so grateful to him for his support. It meant the world,” Parker also wrote.
Evidently affected by the loss of Parker, Sheeran posted on his Instagram after the news of his passing was announced.
“So sad to hear of Tom’s passing. Thoughts and love are with Kelsey, his children and his family. Very sad day, what a lovely guy x” his tribute read.
The Wanted reunited for a greatest hits tour after Tom Parker had revealed his was diagnosed with an inoperable stage 4 cancer in 2020, including a concert organised by Parker at Royal Albert Hall in aid of cancer charities Stand Up to Cancer and The National Brain Appeal.
The boyband's single 'Gold Forever' reentered the UK charts after Parker's death, due to the immense surge in streaming and sales.
It was a tragic loss for the pop music community which - as it has now been revealed - affected Ed Sheeran more than we knew.
