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Home / Entertainment

The Wanted singer Max George may be home for Christmas after heart surgery expedited

NZ Herald
18 Dec, 2024 12:30 AM2 mins to read

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The Wanted singer Max George will undergo heart surgery sooner than expected. Photo / @maxgeorge Instagram

The Wanted singer Max George will undergo heart surgery sooner than expected. Photo / @maxgeorge Instagram

British boy band star Max George has provided an update on his recent shock health scare, revealing he will undergo heart surgery “way quicker” than the doctors first thought.

George, 36, of popular 2000s group The Wanted, previously took to social media from his hospital bed to tell fans he was suffering from an undisclosed heart condition after feeling “really unwell” last week.

In a more recent post, George gave more insight into his condition, saying he was suffering from a 2:1 atrioventricular block.

According to Yale Medicine, an atrioventricular block is the medical term for a slowed heart rate that occurs because of a malfunction with the heart’s electrical system.

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“Unfortunately, my heart rate hasn’t picked up at all in almost a week,” the Glad You Came singer wrote.

“Because of this, we don’t have too much time to wait so it looks like I’m going to be in surgery way quicker than the doctors first thought”.

Max George is the lead singer of the band The Wanted. Photo / Instagram
Max George is the lead singer of the band The Wanted. Photo / Instagram

After his previous posts put the notion in doubt, George then went on to say that he “may even be home for Christmas”.

“Still a pretty scary time right now and the last few nights have been really rough, but I wanted to say that I’m absolutely humbled by all your messages of support”.

George, who has been open with his struggles relating to alcoholism in the past, continued to tell followers it was a “mystery” as to what had caused the medical issue.

“Going to try to find out the cause before determining how we treat it, whether a pacemaker, defibrillator, or something else,” he said.

He ruled out the cause being alcohol-related, revealing he hadn’t had a drink in four and a half years.

The Manchester City football fan also kept his trademark sense of humour, lamenting on his team’s recent loss to Manchester United.

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“So that’s where here I am at, feeling OK tonight, City game didn’t help much”.

Siva Kaneswaran, Nathan Sykes, Max George and Jay McGuiness of The Wanted perform on stage at Motorpoint Arena Cardiff on March 2022 Photo / Mike Lewis Photography, Getty
Siva Kaneswaran, Nathan Sykes, Max George and Jay McGuiness of The Wanted perform on stage at Motorpoint Arena Cardiff on March 2022 Photo / Mike Lewis Photography, Getty

The Wanted, which George is in with Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness and Nathan Sykes, are responsible for popular radio hits like Glad You Came (2011) and Chasing The Sun (2012).

Former bandmate Tom Parker died in 2022 aged 33 after his battle with stage four glioblastoma, prompting George to stop drinking.

The band achieved widespread fame in the 2000s, coming to New Zealand in 2012 for a special performance for a radio promotion.

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