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"AMERICAN Idol" Jordin Sparks has been struck with a career-threatening throat injury that has forced her to cancel three shows over the weekend.
Sparks, who is only 18 and about to start the biggest tour of her life, is suffering from "an acute vocal cord hemorrhage," according to officials.
The reigning "American Idol" winner canceled a concert at Penn State scheduled for last night, an Earth Day show on the National Mall in Washington, DC set for today and - most importantly - the first night of the Alicia Keys tour where she is the opening act Saturday night.
"Because of the risk of permanent vocal cord damage, Sparks has been ordered to strict vocal rest and will not be able to perform anywhere until her condition improves," said a spokesman for the arena at Penn State.
Sparks, her family and reps from her management team at 19 Entertainment could not be immediately reached for comment yesterday.
A medical Web site for the University of Pennsylvania described bleeding in the vocal cord as "a serious problem . . . caused when a person who has laryngitis uses their voice at the height of infection.
"Some severe cases may require laser microsurgery."
The description of the problem as "acute" also indicates the injury may be severe.
That no one from her family or record label was returning calls yesterday to explain the extent of her problems did not help calm the fears of fans either.
Calls to "pray for Jordin" were all over the "Idol" sites yesterday.
The scare comes just as Sparks was standing on the brink of stardom in her own right.
