Queens of the Stone Age were forced to cancel their European tour on Tuesday after frontman Josh Homme began coughing up blood in his Paris hotel room.

The tour started February 16 in Amsterdam, where Homme saw a doctor after struggling with flulike symptoms. In Paris he was diagnosed with severe bronchitis and was flown back to the United States immediately.

In a statement on QOTSA.com, the band said: "We've toured with everything from broken ankles to bruised livers but simply weren't prepared for this relentless attack of teeming bacteria. ... This is an obvious downer for everyone involved. All we really wanted to do was play our new tunes for everybody and turn this 'promo tour' into more of a party. For those of you with any unused tickets, hold on to them. ... We ain't in the habit of canceling, and we don't forget. Our deepest [apologies] to those who have tickets and to Josh, who was coughing up blood."

Homme is recovering at home, according to Interscope. The Queens are scheduled to begin their U.S. tour on March 15 at Stubb's BBQ in Austin, Texas. At the moment, there is no word whether Homme's illness will affect that tour.