Elton John has shared an update on his health, revealing a deterioration in his vision and how it’s affecting him. In an interview with Variety, the 78‑year-old musician, who lost sight in his right eye and is also suffering from weakening in his left, nonetheless found a trace of optimism and patience through science.
“I’ve had the most incredible life, and there is hope,” he said. “I’ve just gotta be patient that someday science will help me with this one. Once they help me with this one, I’ll be fine. It’s exactly like the AIDS situation. You mustn’t give up hope, you must be stoic, you must be strong and you must always try and batter the door down to try and improve things.”
In summer 2024, while on vacation in France, John contracted an eye infection that severely affected his vision. Alongside the emotional toll the condition has taken, John still manages to express hope.
“I’m really, really lucky," he said in the interview, explaining that his work with the AIDS foundation bearing his name helps him keep perspective. "And this helps me, the AIDS Foundation, because when you think, ‘Oh, I’m really feeling sorry for myself,’ and you think of these people [affected by the crisis] and how much work we’ve gotta do, you soon come out of it.”
John elaborated on how he’s felt since the medical event that led to his vision loss.
“It’s been devastating,” he said. “Because I lost my right eye and my left eye’s not so good, the last 15 months have been challenging for me because I haven’t been able to see anything, watch anything, read anything."
Yet despite the worsening condition, John emphasizes that music remains a significant part of his life and daily routine.
“On the other hand, I’ve still been able to play. I’m still singing. We did the Singapore Grand Prix the other day with the band, which was wonderful. I mean, you just have to grin and bear it. It does get me down sometimes. But on the whole, I’ve got a wonderful family; I have two great kids; I have him,” he said, pointing to his husband, David Furnish.
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Elton John and husband David Furnish front row at Valentino's Spring-Summer 2025 Haute Couture show
(Photo: Victor Boyko/Getty Images for Valentino)
During the interview, Furnish added details about the singer's condition.
“We’ve been doing some treatments and there’s been some improvements in his left eye, which is really good, and we’re continuing to explore and getting a lot of outreach from a lot of doctors who want to help and support. Because there’s damage to the retina in his right eye, retinas don’t heal naturally, so it’s an area of emerging science. But things are changing really quickly. What AI is doing for medicine and science alone is astonishing. And there’s all kinds of interesting new theories and breakthroughs, and they can process the data and do the trials a lot more quickly than they could before.”
John’s family is not his only support network; many of his musician friends check on him regularly and care about his well‑being.
"Paul McCartney FaceTimes me to see how I’m doing. It’s really beautiful. The love I’ve received from him and from Pete Townshend and Mick Jagger and people like that have been amazing. Or you get an email from Keith Richards saying, ‘Hello, darling, how you doing? You know we love you,’ and that’s it, but it just makes my day,” he described.
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Elton John at an LGBT rights event at the Stonewall Center in New York
(Photo: Mandel Ngan / AFP)
Although John is now in his late 70s, he also spoke about staying connected with younger musician friends.
“The thing with my iPad is, I can actually see someone close-up. So I often call Chappell (Rowan), and of course, I always call Brandi (Carlile) because she’s one of my best friends. But it’s a way of me staying in communication with people.”
Furnish explained that John uses a computer screen with large letters, which allows him to read a little with his less‑impaired eye. He said John’s big motivation was his desire to follow weekly music charts.
But even though he continues to follow the music he loves from a distance, John admits that attending live concerts is now almost impossible for him.
“It’s tough to go and see a show,” John admits, “because I saw Chappell out in the desert [at Coachella] and I saw Brandi at the Albert Hall, and they were both incredible shows. But I can’t really see what’s going on.”
At that point, Furnish chimed in with a small comment — and both burst into laughter.
"Yeah, but you were giving Brandi lighting notes,” he points out. “You were in the back of the box at the other end of the Albert Hall, and you were giving her lighting notes! Which I just love.”
John smiled sheepishly and said: “I was. At least I can do that.”