Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek’s network of contributors
Isabella Strahan experienced a huge win in her battle against medulloblastoma.
Michael Strahan’s 19-year-old daughter, who went public with her brain tumor diagnosis in January and has been vlogging ever since, shared the heartwarming update on her YouTube channel on Wednesday, April 10.
“These are happy tears. These are happy tears,” she began Wednesday’s vlog, titled “Happy Tears and the Best SURPRISES!!!” before quipping: “I’m not gonna cry. It’s not even considered crying if they’re happy tears.”
Isabella informed her viewers that her “doctor just called and told me I only have to do two more rounds of chemo … and it’s like the biggest thing. And I’m so happy,” she wept. “So I’ll be done in May and I can kind of try to have a summer to feel better. And I’m so happy because I thought I’d be done by the end of July, because I was supposed to do six rounds in total … I’m so happy.”
Isabella Strahan/YouTube
Isabella’s latest vlog showcased her positivity and optimism — and even more happy tears when her twin sister, Sophia, surprised her with a visit. (Michael shares Isabella and Sophia with ex-wife Jean Muggli; he is also father of Tanita, 32, and Michael Jr., 29, whom he shares with his first wife, Wanda Hutchins.)
Isabella was all smiles when she announced in the video that she was “halfway done with chemo.”
“I’ve been praying that I would only have to do four rounds and now … yay! Now, I can’t even be a little bit sad because I can do it,” she said. “I’ve done it, I just have to repeat everything I’ve just done. I’m just super happy. Today’s a great day.”
Isabella was diagnosed with medulloblastoma in October 2023 — just one month after starting her freshman year at UCLA.
“I didn’t notice anything was off till probably like October 1. That’s when I definitely noticed headaches, nausea, couldn’t walk straight,” she told Robin Roberts in a sit-down interview with her dad in January. “I woke up, probably at like, 1 p.m. I dreaded waking up. But I was throwing up blood,” she recounted. “I was like, ‘Hm, this probably isn’t good.’ So I texted [my sister], who then notified the whole family.” She was diagnosed later that month when doctors found a tumor larger than a golf ball in the back of her brain. She has since undergone surgery to remove the tumor, six weeks of radiation therapy, and now weeks of chemo.
“The hardest thing to get over is to think that she has to go through this herself,” Michael told his GMA coanchor at the time.
Two months later, when giving an update on Isabella on the morning show, the former NFL star noted: “It is tough to see her go through it, but I know she’s a tough young lady and she’s going to make it through it.”
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.