Following a recent report from TMZ that Eddie Van Halen is battling throat cancer, the guitar legend seems to be doing okay. His son Wolfgang has been making sure fans know that his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame father is in good spirits by posting a series of encouraging Instagram photos.
As previously reported, Wolfgang shared a pic of his dad snapping a photo of a fan who had no idea he had just asked an iconic musician to take his picture at a recent Tool show.
While that photo had the Van Halen guitarist’s back turned to the camera, a new series of selfie pics show Eddie smiling and laughing alongside his ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli and Wolfgang. The younger Van Halen simply captioned the slideshow, “Family.”
Eddie’s throat-cancer battle is unconfirmed, but the guitarist did undergo treatment for tongue cancer back in 2000. In 2002, he was declared cancer-free after having part of his tongue removed. However, the new TMZ report suggested that Eddie has been flying to Germany for the past five years to seek radiation treatment for throat cancer.
(Read: 35 Years Ago, Van Halen Conquered the Charts with 1984)
Just prior to the TMZ article, Van Halen singer David Lee Roth said in an interview, “I think Van Halen is finished,” followed by the cryptic line, “And that being said, Eddie’s got his own story to tell.”
While not currently active, Van Halen’s most recent lineup consisted of Roth, Eddie, Wolfgang (bass), and Eddie’s brother Alex (drums). Late last year, rumors of a reunion with classic bassist Michael Anthony surfaced, but Anthony later said that the “plug got pulled” before any serious talks took place.
See the pics of Eddie, Wolfgang, and Valerie in the Instagram slideshow below.
