![\"Michael](\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/tObI9w6SBXN4oepfdW1v0g7MzY4=\/1500x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(634x182:636x184):format(webp)\/PEOPLE_MichaelBolton_5-777efc8356e64586a0146366d3cd5a1f.jpg\")
<\/div>\n<\/div>Michael Bolton<\/a>\u00a0is living life one day at a time in the wake of his brain cancer diagnosis.<\/p>\n The Grammy-winning singer, 72, was diagnosed with glioblastoma in December 2023 \u2014 and in his first interview since, Bolton and his daughters reveal to PEOPLE that he has not been given a prognosis, as they\u2019re choosing instead to remain hopeful.<\/p>\n \u201cOur doctor told us that he has patients with glio that he has for 10 years,\u201d Bolton\u2019s daughter Holly tells PEOPLE in this week\u2019s cover story. \u201cIn my mind that\u2019s my dad.\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cHow Am I Supposed to Live Without You?\u201d singer\u00a0finished chemotherapy and radiation treatments in October<\/a>\u00a0and is now in what his doctors call a \u201csurvivorship\u201d stage. The path forward is all about monitoring, as the recurrence rate is 90 percent. Bolton goes for MRIs every two months to ensure his tumor has not returned, and his most recent scan, taken in early April, was clear.<\/p>\n Though the statistics remain daunting \u2014 the five-year survival rate for glio patients is just 6.9 percent, per the\u00a0Glioblastoma Foundation<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Holly notes that her dad\u2019s illness is the \u201cbest-case scenario,\u201d as it was discovered fairly early; his tumor was removed in its entirety; and he has a genetic marker that makes him a good chemotherapy candidate.<\/p>\n \u201cWe continue to monitor for tumor recurrence,\u201d Bolton\u2019s neuro-oncologist, Dr. Ingo Mellinghoff of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, tells PEOPLE of survivorship. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re cured, necessarily\u2026 It\u2019s a switch in the mentality. Hope is one of the strongest therapies we have.\u201d<\/p>\n Mellinghoff is also hopeful that new treatments for \u201caggressive\u201d glioblastoma will be discovered in time, which he explains is why he shies away from words like \u201cincurable.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Michael](\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/smaL_ofNrLvjlenTE-LuyH18qic=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(999x0:1001x2):format(webp)\/PEOPLE_MichaelBolton_COVER-b2dd44cc349849f3aeaf3630817ced8a.jpg\")
<\/div>\n<\/div>
![\"Michael](\"https:\/\/people.com\/thmb\/8vV32jO8Zt6Y_Gh85i7KJ-csMGo=\/4000x0\/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(574x0:576x2):format(webp)\/PEOPLE_MichaelBolton_2-20e9dc9542a84fbebb4fcc6d063b8446.jpg\")
<\/div>\n<\/div>