WHEN doctors told gran Irene Baillie that she had thyroid cancer, her first fear was not for her life but for her voice.

WHEN doctors told gran Irene Baillie that she had thyroid cancer, her first fear was not for her life but for her voice.

Irene, 62, has been singing since she was 11 and performs numbers by Shirley Bassey, Barbra Streisand and Diana Ross in nursing homes across Glasgow.

But when her singing teacher told Irene her voice sounded different - and she had trouble swallowing - she went to see her GP.

After repeated visits to the surgery she was finally referred to a throat specialist at the Victoria Infirmary. Doctors said Irene simply had nodules on her throat, a common complaint among singers. She had a minor operation to remove them and was told they would be sent away for analysis, with the results taking six weeks.

Three days later she got a phone call asking her to return to hospital urgently. She was told she had thyroid cancer.

She said: "The first thing I said was 'Don't take my singing voice away - nothing else matters'."

Soprano Irene admits singing is everything to her. She said: "That's where I find my happiness. When I'm on stage I forget about everything."

But she knew the diagnosis could force her to hang up her microphone. Rock singer Rod Stewart lost his voice for nine months after undergoing surgery for thyroid cancer.

Irene's tumours were growing quickly. When diagnosed she had four growths on her thyroid and by the time she had surgery to remove them there were 11.

Her whole thyroid- the gland in the neck which controls metabolism - had to be removed.

Irene twice had radioactive iodine treatment, a type of radiotherapy, at the Western Infirmary and was kept in isolation for a week each time.

Irene said "I was very sick, it was horrendous."

During her treatment Irene wasn't able to sing a note - and didn't know if she still could. But just two months after surgery she found the perfect opportunity to try out her voice again - son Scott's wedding. Irene was determined to sing as he walked down the aisle in Toronto, Canada, where Irene used to live.

And Irene, from Cathcart, said: "I didn't know if I could do it but I wanted to do it for them. It was absolutely fine and I was delighted. I knew then the voice was still there."

Irene, sang With These Hands, a song made famous by Tom Jones. That was four years ago and she has completely recovered.

Scott and wife Nadiya have given Irene a third grandchild, William, six months. Her 39-year-old daughter Sharon is mum to Grace, two, and Milla three.

Irene auditioned for Britain's Got Talent earlier this year in Glasgow, appearing just ahead of Susan Boyle.

She said: "I was fifth and she was sixth. She was lovely, though I thought she was a wee bit eccentric. We said good luck to each other."

Irene didn't have much luck when she appeared before the judges, including Simon Cowell. She recalls: "Simon said 'You've got some power in your voice, but we don't want a Shirley Bassey'. I said 'I'm not Shirley Bassey I'm Irene Baillie!'."

Undeterred, Irene is now using her big voice to raise what she hopes will be a huge amount of cash for the British Thyroid Association. It researches thyroid diseases including cancer.

She is performing at the City Halls on Sunday with a host of other acts including fellow singers Julie Collins and Ossie Montgomery, the Uddingston Pipe Band, Jazz Art Dancers, choral group Sweet Adeline and the Glasgow Accordion Band.

Irene and daughter Sharon McLaughlin, who runs a PR company, have organised the event.

Irene said: "It's to say thank you for getting my voice back."

The concert starts at 7pm. For tickets, which cost £12.50, call 0141 353 8000 or visit www.glasgowconcerthalls.com