Surgery Helps Heart Singer Drop 50

By Beth Lipton

07/19/2002 at 12:00 PM EDT

Rock singer Ann Wilson, who, along with sister Nancy shot to fame in the 1970s in the band Heart, has lost 50 lbs. since having a "Lap-Band" surgically implanted around her stomach, Reuters reports. The device is placed around the stomach to limit how much the patient can eat before feeling full, according to a doctor for Wilson, 52. Wilson's weight before the surgery was not disclosed, Reuters notes, but the doctor said in a statement that she had lost 50 lbs. in the months after the surgery and "expects to lose the vast majority of her excess weight." This procedure is designed for people who are overweight by 100 lbs. or more, the doctor said, noting that he selected this device because the intestines and stomach are not cut or stapled, as they are with other procedures -- such as the gastric bypass surgery that singer Carnie Wilson (no relation) had in 1999. Heart first gained fame in 1976 with the song "Crazy on You," according to MTV.com, and went on to score hits with songs such as "Magic Man" and "Barracuda." The band had a resurgence in the mid-'80s with songs like "What About Love" and "These Dreams."