May 15, 2004

"Ring Of Fire" songwriter Merle Kilgore undergoes angioplasty for a blocked artery at Nashville's Saint Thomas Hospital. Doctors determine his condition is more serious than anticipated and advise him to have quadruple bypass surgery

May 19, 2004

Willie Nelson undergoes surgery in Los Angeles to eliminate pain in his left hand caused by carpal tunnel syndrome

May 19, 2004

"Ring Of Fire" songwriter Merle Kilgore has heart surgery at Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville. Originally intended as quadruple bypass surgery, it becomes a quintuple bypass operation when doctors discover more blockage

Jun 29, 2004

Ed Benson, the executive director of the Country Music Association, undergoes triple heart bypass surgery in Nashville

Aug 7, 2004

After experiencing a heart attack, The Oak Ridge Boys' William Lee Golden has a stent inserted in a blocked artery during surgery at Wausau Hospital in Wisconsin

Aug 12, 2004

Jan Howard has the first of several surgeries in Nashville for cataracts

Sep 2, 2004

"Ring Of Fire" songwriter Merle Kilgore, the manager of Hank Williams Jr., undergoes back surgery in Memphis

Sep 22, 2004

Steve Azar has surgery for a benign lesion on his right vocal cord

Sep 24, 2004

Ray Price has a stent inserted during an angioplasty procedure at a Houston hospital to eliminate blockage around his heart

Oct 25, 2004

Margie Bowes has a foot amputated. The limb was severely injured in a 1995 car accident, and Bowes had undergone several surgeries on the foot in the interim