Michael Flatley announces he is suffering from aggressive form of cancer

US dancer and choreographer Michael Flatley, famous for his Irish production Riverdance, has had surgery for an "aggressive form of cancer".

A post on his Instagram page said he was "in the care of an excellent team of doctors", adding no further comments would be made.

Flatley, 64, shot to fame with Riverdance, which first appeared during the 1994 Eurovision interval in Dublin, lasting seven minutes.

Flatley had choreographed it and it seemed to mesmerise audiences the world over, with rows of immaculately precise performers doing complex Irish dancing steps.

Its roaring success at Eurovision, where it teamed Irish dancers with fabulously dramatic music by Bill Whelan, saw it extended into a full-length show which opened at Dublin's Point Theatre the following year and audiences flocked to see it.

Since its debut, more than three billion people worldwide have seen the show on television.

Flatley, born to an Irish-American family in Chicago, has also created, produced and directed productions including Feet Of Flames and Celtic Tiger.

He has previously had a diagnosis of facial skin cancer which he was treated for in 2003.

Last year Flatley launched a Lord Of The Dance tour, which helped raise money for the humanitarian effort in Ukraine.

Michael also directed and starred in the spy thriller film Blackbird, which did not receive many positive reviews.

The film also stars Eric Roberts, Patrick Bergin and Ian Beattie, and Flatley plays former MI6 operative Victor Blackley, who returns to the world of espionage, having left it behind.