Mama June Shannon is offering an update on daughter Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell’s battle with cancer. Anna is suffering from stage 4 adrenal carcinoma, and in an exclusive interview with Entertainment Tonight, June shared a heartbreaking update on her condition.
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June admitted her family doesn't know what to expect in the months ahead.
Unfortunately, June shared that Anna's cancer is terminal, and even though her daughter is generally doing well, cancer is still a scary thing, especially when you know that the person isn’t going to survive it.
“We don't know what to expect because the cancer is very aggressive and it grew from nothing to something huge on the left side of her body really fast,” June explained.
So far, Anna has undergone four rounds of chemotherapy.
She's still living her life as normally as possible.
Anna’s sister, Lauryn "Pumpkin" Efird, noted that her older sister "doesn't have hair, she has no eyebrows, she doesn't have any hair on her arms or anything like that."
But Anna's not letting any of that stop her from living her life and taking care of her family.
"She can still go to the grocery store, she can drive herself, she's still able to take the kids to and from places," Lauryn added.
Anna bounces back from her treatment easily, according to her sister.
Chemotherapy takes a toll on the body, but Lauryn noted her sister’s strength.
"A lot of people thought that it was gonna make her sick and stuff like that, [but] she's able to bounce back pretty quick," she said.
Youngest sister Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson added that "It does wear her body down sometimes, but other than that, she's pretty good."
Her daughters are getting by.
Anna is mom to two kids: Kaitlyn, 10, and Kylee, 7. The family explained that the girls are doing as well as they can be given what’s happening.
"The 10-year-old is aware. I don't think she fully understands," Lauryn said of her niece Kaitlyn. "I think she understands that Mommy is sick and Mommy might not be here for a while …"
June noted that Kylee understands less of what’s happening, but her big sister is aware of what's going on. "Kaitlyn was always close with Anna, but now she doesn't go anywhere without Anna," she said. "I get that because she's thinking if Anna goes somewhere then maybe Anna might not be at the house when she gets back."
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Anna wants to play it by ear.
Anna is finished with chemo for now and looking into clinical trials or maybe immunotherapy as possible treatment options, but June shared that she’s not sure if she will end up choosing either.
"She just wants to see how it's gonna go," she said, adding that the family doesn’t know "what is going to happen next now when the chemo starts to come out of her body."
Right now, the family is just trying to take things "one day at a time," which is really all they can do knowing that Anna’s cancer is terminal.
It's an 'emotional roller coaster' for the family.
"She's stage 4. She's not gonna go into remission," June said. "We've all accepted that, so I just tell people one day at a time 'cause you never know."
Still, the family is holding on to hope for the future.
"It is crazy to think that she will not be here probably in five years, but I'm hoping that she can pull through and fight 10, 20 years," Alana said.
