Maria Menounos was secretly battling a deadly disease during what should have been the most exciting time of her life.
In early May, the 44-year-old television personality told People that she survived Stage 2 pancreatic cancer as she prepared to welcome her first child with husband Kevin Undergaro via surrogate. The couple previously announced their happy news in February 2023 without revealing that Menounos was diagnosed with cancer just a month prior.
"This whole year has been trauma, stress, crisis," Menounos told People. "I need people to know there are places they can go to catch things early. You can't let fear get in the way. I had that moment where I thought I was a goner-but I'm okay because I caught this early enough."
The "Heal Squad" podcast host was diagnosed and treated for a brain tumor in 2017 and was more recently diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, which runs in her family. When it came to treating her diabetes with insulin and a strict diet, Menounos said she was "crushing it" by October 2022, only to be hit with a major setback a month later.
After experiencing "excruciating abdominal pain coupled with diarrhea," Menounos explained that a CT scan and extensive hospital testing all came up negative, so she agreed to do a whole-body MRI with a company called Prenuvo, which revealed a mass on her pancreas. A biopsy then confirmed she had a Stage 2 pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor.
"I'm like 'How in the freaking world can I have a brain tumor and pancreatic cancer?'" Menounos said. "All I could think was that I have a baby coming."
Thankfully, the tumor was removed surgically in February 2023 and Maria Menounos will not need to undergo further treatment or chemotherapy, though she will have annual scans for the next five years. For now, she's feeling "grateful and so lucky" as she prepares to meet her first child. "God granted me a miracle," she said. "I'm going to appreciate having her in my life so much more than I would have before this journey."