Dolly Parton kept cancer private to not ‘worry’ fans, niece says

( NewsNation ) — Country music star Dolly Parton was thinking about her fans during her battle with cancer , according to her family.

The singer’s niece, Jada Star, said Parton kept her diagnosis “real private” because she didn’t want her fans concerned about her health.

“She never wanted to worry anybody,” Star told Extra on Tuesday. “So, I think it was just a shock.”

Parton died on Aug. 25 after a brief battle with cancer, her family revealed. She was 80.

Star said her aunt’s death has been “really difficult and very surreal” for the family, but the outpouring of love from the country legend’s fans has been “really bittersweet.”

“All of these tributes have helped so much to help us all through it,” Star, who is also a singer and songwriter, told Extra.

Parton’s family honored her wishes and laid her to rest at a private funeral at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville, Tenn., on Friday, Aug. 28.

Bryan Seaver, the “Jolene” singer’s nephew, revealed in the video announcing her death that Parton requested her final resting place be “comfortable.”

“Dolly was a farmer, just like her daddy. He farmed the soil. She farmed songs and happiness,” Seaver said. “Dolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton because after a life wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be comfortable and have some rest.”