Madonna's 'closest human' brother Christopher Ciccone dies after cancer battle

Madonna has honoured her brother Christopher Ciccone, who passed away at 63, as being "the closest thing to me for so long".Ciccone was a multi-talented artist, dancer, and designer, with notable involvements in Madonna's career such as appearances in her 'Lucky Star' music video, art directing the 'Blond Ambition World Tour', and directing 'The Girlie Show' tour.

He died on Friday in Michigan following a cancer diagnosis.In an emotional Instagram post, Madonna reflected on his struggle: "He was the closest human to me for so long, it’s hard to explain our bond," she wrote. "But it grew out of an understanding that we were different and society was going to give us a hard time for not following the status quo.""We took each other‘s hands and we danced through the madness of our childhood, in fact dance was a kind of superglue that held us together.

Discovering dance in our small Midwestern town saved me and then my brother came along, and it saved him too." Join the Daily Record's WhatsApp community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages. She continued by revealing their connection to their ballet teacher, also named Christopher, who provided a sanctuary for her brother: "Discovering dance in our small Midwestern town saved me and then my brother came along, and it saved him too, my ballet teacher, also named Christopher, created a safe space for my brother to be gay, a word that was not spoken or even whispered where we lived."Reflecting on their journey to New York, Madonna emphasised the solidarity between them: "When I finally got the courage to go to New York to become a dancer, my brother followed, and again we took each other’s hands, and we danced through the madness of New York