Malcolm Young, AC/DC's guitarist and founding member, has quit the band after 41 years and is in a nursing home because he has dementia, according to his family.
"Malcolm is suffering from dementia and the family thanks you for respecting their privacy,"
the family of the 61-year-old rocker said in a brief statement to People.
The news comes as the longtime Australian rockers plan to release their 17th studio album "Rock or Bust," currently scheduled to be out by the end of the year, according to People. It will be the AC/DC's first recording without Young on guitar, noted the magazine.
The band released its own statement on its website, following up on one in April saying that Young was taking a break from the band because of an illness.
"Unfortunately, due to the nature of Malcolm's condition, he will not be returning to the band," said the AC/DC statement. "AC/DC will undertake a world tour in support of 'Rock or Bust' in 2015. Stevie Young, nephew of founding members Angus and Malcolm Young, plays rhythm guitar on 'Rock or Bust' and will accompany the band on tour."
The Sydney Morning Herald reported last week that Young had been moved to a full-time care in a nursing home facility in suburban Sydney specializing in dementia.
"If you were in the room with (Malcolm Young) and walked out, then came back in one minute later, he wouldn't remember who you are," a source told the Morning Herald. "He has a complete loss of short-term memory. His wife, Linda, has put him in full-time care."
The band has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide, according to the Morning Herald, and has been listed as one of the top grossing tour acts and a longtime standard bearer for Australian musical acts.
AC/DC popularized the sound of pub rock, the defining mainstream sound of Australian music in the 1970s and '80s.
AC/DC front man Brian Johnson told
Classic Rock in a September interview that Young's absence has not gone unnoticed by his bandmates.
"We miss Malcolm obviously," said Johnson. "He's a fighter. He's in hospital but he's a fighter. We've got our fingers crossed that he'll get strong again."
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