Shane MacGowan's health battle through the years has been revisited following the confirmation of his death.
The Pogues singer's wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, revealed that MacGowan died weeks after he was discharged from Dublin's St. Vincent's Hospital on November 22. The singer, 65, reportedly died following a prolonged period of ill health.
Shane MacGowan's Health Issues Revisited
Over the years, MacGowan endured the effects of his relationship with alcohol. His wife revealed to The Independent in 2016 that his "work and drinking had always gone hand in hand," adding that his lifestyle as a musician revolved around environments that involved drinking.
"Shane has been a singer all his life, singing in bars and clubs and other venues where people go to drink and have fun. If anyone is not drinking, it is unusual in these places," she said. "So the drinking has not just been a recreational activity, his whole career has revolved around it and, indeed, been both enhanced and simultaneously inhibited by it."
Aside from alcohol, MacGowan also faced struggles with Class A drugs. His addiction worsened that he once missed a flight to open for Bob Geldof in a show.
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His health took a turn for the worse in 2016 when he suddenly felt an excruciating pain in his hips a year after he fractured his pelvis following a fall. While he did not need surgery, he was advised to undergo physiotherapy and take a good rest to allow himself to heal.
MacGowan relied on his wheelchair after sustaining the injury.
Meanwhile, his pneumonia diagnosis also led him to finally turn his back to alcohol.
Amid his sobriety journey, MacGowan's health was tested again in 2020 when he broke his knee and tore his ligaments during a fall at his home. It caused him to become bedridden and unable to eat for days.
In between those years, he suffered from oral health issues and dentistry complications.
The worst thing happened in December 2022 when he spent his holiday at a hospital following his encephalitis diagnosis. The disease, which is an inflammation of the brain, is a rare but serious condition that can be fatal.
MacGowan was in and out of the medical facility several times until he was discharged on November 22, weeks before his death.
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