Chris Foreman has revealed that he has been diagnosed with cancer.

The British musician announced the sad news that he had been diagnosed with myeloma, an incurable blood cancer that affects the bones and other parts of the body.

In an emotional statement posted on the official Madness Instagram account on Friday, Foreman revealed that doctors had found a tumour in his spine after he experienced "unbearable" pain during a show in France.

"Dear all Earlier this year I had severe pain in my upper back and shoulders," he began. "On the 28th of June we played a show in France and it had become unbearable."

The 69-year-old continued, "I had an MRI scan at the end of June and they found a tumour on my spine. On the 4th of July I went to the Royal Sussex and had all sorts of stuff done to me. I had radiotherapy which blasted it and stopped the pain."

Foreman added that he had also undergone a spinal tap, and that it had later been discovered that his kidneys were functioning at only 14%. However, he noted that this figure had "greatly improved since then".

"What I've got is a form of cancer called myeloma. It's treatable but not curable," he continued. "When I get it into remission (I will!) I should be able to get back to normal life."

The musician said that people have been known to live with the disease for 20 years or more, and added that although he has a long road ahead of him, he hopes to be back on stage by 2026.

He went on to praise his band, road crew and family for their support, admitting that not being able to perform with his bandmates this year had been "really hard".

Foreman is one of the original members of the British group Madness, which formed in 1976 as the North London Invaders.

The group, best known for hits such as It Must Be Love and Our House, are next scheduled to go on tour in December.