Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell, daughter of televison personality Mama June Shannon, is battling cancer.
The news was confirmed by People, which noted that Cardwell, 28, was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma in January. She underwent testing after experiencing stomach aches, which led to the discovery that she had cancer in her liver, kidney, and lung. She underwent her first round of chemotherapy last month.
A source told TMZ that Cardwell's family was "very hopeful" that she will overcome the cancer. Doctors will make further decisions after seeing how she reacts to the chemotherapy.
Cardwell appeared alongside her mother, 43, and sister Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson in TLC's "Toddlers & Tiaras" and "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo." Thompson confirmed the cancer diagnosis by sharing an article on her Instagram stories Thursday.
"This is what I mean when I say you never truly know what somebody is going through at home," she wrote "No matter how famous they are. Yes, I'm very famous but normal s**t happens to me and my family & y'all need to realize that asap."
Cardwell, who is mother to two daughters — Kaitlyn Elizabeth, born in 2012, and daughter Kylee Madison, born in 2015 — has had a strained relationship with Shannon.
In 2003, Cardwell moved out of her mother's house after being assaulted by Shannon's then-boyfriend, Mark McDaniel, who was a registered sex offender, according to People. Cardwell opened up about the ordeal with the outlet in 2014, saying that McDaniel "would try and touch me and all that stuff" when she was 8.
"A week or so after it happened, I talked to Mama and she was upset, crying and saying, 'I don't believe you, I don't believe you. Why would you do this to me?'" Cardwell told People. "And I was like, 'Mama, he did that to me, and I can't do anything about it. You were never there to see it. You were always at work.'"
In 2012, Cardwell returned to Shannon's house to rectify things.
"Me and Mama realized we needed to put this behind us and get our relationship back on track, and that's what we did, and that's what we have been doing," Cardwell said.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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