Jessie J says she suffered a minor stroke when she was 18

NEW YORK, May 9 (UPI) -- British singer-songwriter Jessie J revealed this week she suffered a minor stroke when she was 18 years old.

The 26-year-old recording artist dropped the bombshell during a speech at the Delete Bone Cancer Gala in New York Wednesday night. She dedicated "Who You Are" to "anybody in this room who's lost somebody to cancer" and mentioned she penned the song when she was 18 after she "had just had a minor stroke."

"I thought that I was never going to get better," she recalled. "I feel so lucky that I was given a second chance at life. ... So, every day when I am able to do this, you have no idea how amazing it feels that I'm so lucky to be onstage and singing and living my dream."

The performer also has dealt with heart problems since she was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome as a child.