Celine Dion Says Husband Rene Angelil Wants to ‘Die In [Her] Arms’

Celine Dion went on a year-long hiatus, postponing her Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace to help take care of her husband, Rene Angelil, who is currently battling throat cancer. But starting in just a few days (August 27), she’ll take the stage once more, after Angelil insisted she do so.

In an interview with USA Today Dion said, "I didn't want to be here at first, I don't need it. Don't get me wrong, I love singing for people, but I have priorities.”

She continued, "But René really gave me a gift. All my grieving, it was during this last year. I think I've got this. For now. When it hits me, it's going to hit me. But my biggest job is to tell my husband, we're fine. I'll take care of our kids. You'll watch us from another spot.”

Dion says that doctors aren’t sure how much longer Angelil, who has been fed intravenously for two years now, might live, "We have asked (doctors) many times, how long does he have, three weeks, three months? René wants to know. But they say they don't know.”

But despite the uncertainty of the future, Dion has remained strong for Angelil, saying, "I'll say, 'You're scared? I understand. Talk to me about it.' And René says to me, 'I want to die in your arms.' OK, fine, I'll be there, you'll die in my arms.”

But Angelil ultimately encouraged her to return to performing: "Don't forget, he's been the leader of the band all my life. So it (hacks) him off to not see me all day and over here working. But he wants me to do this, do the show, do the interviews. But he freaks when I'm not home with him, too."

And while Dion recognizes that her first show back “will be fragile…There will be moments of emptiness, laughter, awkwardness tearing up,” she says it’s important she do it, in part, for Angelil.

She said, "When you see someone who is fighting so hard, it has a big impact on you. You have two choices. You look at your husband who's very sick and you can't help, and it kills you. Or you look at your husband that's sick and you say, 'I got you. I got it. I'm here. It's going to be just fine.'"

She continued, "You can have your shaking knees at the end, but when someone you love falls and needs help, it's not time to cry. Afterwards, sure. But not yet."

See Photos of Celine Dion Throughout the Years