Baseless claims about COVID-19 vaccine paralysis and Celine Dion spread online

On Oct. 19, singer Celine Dion announced on her website that she was canceling several scheduled performances in Las Vegas due to "unforeseen medical symptoms." 

"Celine has been experiencing severe and persistent muscle spasms which are preventing her from performing," the statement said. "Her medical team continues to evaluate and treat her. However, the symptoms she is experiencing are prohibiting her from participating in the ongoing rehearsals for the new show." 

"I am heartbroken by this," Dion said, tweeting the statement. "My team and I have been working on our new show for the past eight months and to not be able to open this November saddens me beyond words. I have to focus on getting better." 

Neither her tweet nor the statement mentions COVID-19 or the COVID-19 vaccine. But that hasn’t stopped claims from circulating that the singer "has been paralyzed by the COVID vaccine and cancels her tour." 

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We found no news reports, tweets, or statements to support this claim. 

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Claudette Dion, the singer’s sister, said on a TV show that "she shared with me that the stage had a steep incline when she was performing that would cause problems to her muscles, legs and feet." 

Dion delayed the opening of her Las Vegas show, canceling performances from Nov. 5 through Feb. 5, 2022, but she still has 19 shows on the books in North America in March and April 2022, and more shows scheduled abroad well into 2023.  

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