American Idol finalist Jax
Jax says, "the doctors are very optimistic about a full recovery." Kevork Djansezian /Getty

American Idol 2015 finalist, Jax, has opened up about her battle with thyroid cancer. In an emotional Instagram post, the singer revealed that she was diagnosed with Hashimoto disease in April this year.

"While grocery shopping with my parents, I felt a small lump on my throat," she wrote on the image-sharing platform. She admitted of ignoring the symptoms initially, but it was her parents who wanted her to seek expert opinion on the lump.

The work, pressure, & travel in music is not always so forgiving on the mind and heart. It absolutely takes its toll on your body. Sometimes I think the universe is yelling at me to slow down and I just blatantly ignore it. I have always been obsessed with my job and craft, so stopping and breathing isn't easy for me. However, my health has to come first. I understand that now. Recently my family and I were given a serious wake up call... As I was recording and doing press out on the West Coast, I noticed that I was waking up in a very dark place everyday. Stress has always been a weight in my life, but over the course of a few weeks something felt different. I was losing my voice often, and struggling to keep my eyes open and my moods/energy consistent. My happiness was the last concern on my priority list and my folks new something was definitely up. So, long story short, I came back home to NY for a bit (we had just sold out my first homecoming show since tour at Webster Hall in Manhattan) to rehearse. While grocery shopping with my parents, I felt a small lump on my throat. We really didn't think much of it, as I mentioned I tend to ignore bumps in the road (pun intended) for the sake of speed and production. I was homeschooled so my lame immune system is always giving out on me. Either way, my mom and dad thought it would be a good idea to check it out just in case, so I went in for some ultrasounds and tests (via Urgent Care believe it or not). A few appointmets later, I was definitively diagnosed with Hashimoto disease. The doctors found 18 tumors on my Thyroid...Which would explain what I had been going through emotionally. I'm pretty convinced after all this that my Thyroid is more important than my actual brain. After that diagnosis, my Thyroid specialist wanted to double check and biopsy the tumors to make sure they were not cancerous. It is unlikely for Thyroid cancer to occur in younger people. I went into the hospital for a biopsy on the tumors, performed my show at Webster Hall, and got a call from the hospital a few days later. It turned out that 12 out of the 18 tumors tested positive for cancer...Continue reading at Crowdrise.com/JAXPACK❤️

A photo posted by JAX (@jax) on

"I went in for some ultrasounds and tests (via Urgent Care believe it or not). A few appointments later, I was definitively diagnosed with Hashimoto disease. The doctors found 18 tumours on my Thyroid...Which would explain what I had been going through emotionally," her post read.

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The 20-year-old, who ended up on third spot in the competition, told My Central Jersey that she had her thyroid and some lymph nodes surgically removed and is undergoing radiation therapy. She assured fans that doctors are of the view that she would recover completely.

"I'm a total insomniac and professional over-thinker/crazy person so this is hard for me either way. Cancer is a tricky topic. The doctors are very optimistic about a full recovery," she told the website.

Dubbed America's pop punk princess, Jax said that the wake-up call was needed as she had completely submerged herself in work and was under pressure due to her music commitments.

"Sometimes I think the universe is yelling at me to slow down and I just blatantly ignore it. I have always been obsessed with my job and craft, so stopping and breathing isn't easy for me. However, my health has to come first. I understand that now. Recently my family and I were given a serious wake-up call... As I was recording and doing press out on the West Coast, I noticed that I was waking up in a very dark place every day. Stress has always been a weight in my life, but over the course of a few weeks, something felt different," Jax wrote speaking about her struggle with the disease.

The ordeal has not deterred the Americal Idol finalist. She is all set to participate in the 2016 TCS NYC Marathon scheduled to take place on 6 November this year to raise funds for Tuesday's Children, an organisation that supports families and communities impacted by terrorism.