Michael Strahan’s daughter, Isabella Strahan, revealed on Good Morning America that she is receiving treatment for medulloblastoma, a malignant brain tumor affecting the cerebellum.
On Thursday, Isabella and her father candidly discussed her health journey, sharing details of her October diagnosis and the subsequent emergency surgery at Cedars-Sinai to remove a brain mass, which took place a day before her 19th birthday.
“I’m feeling good. Not too bad,” said Isabella, who starts chemotherapy at Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center in Durham, North Carolina, next month. “That’s my next step. I’m ready for it to start and be one day closer to being over. …. I’m very excited for this whole process to wrap. But you just have to keep living every day, I think, through the whole thing.”
.@MichaelStrahan's daughter Isabella opens up about her brain tumor battle, with Michael telling @RobinRoberts: “I know she's going through it, but I know that we're never given more than we can handle and that she is going to crush this.” https://t.co/zZJMG7h8OV pic.twitter.com/3GJE4O4jHj
— Good Morning America (@GMA) January 11, 2024
“I literally think that, in a lot of ways, I’m the luckiest man in the world, because I’ve got an amazing daughter,” Michael told GMA co-anchor Robin Roberts. “I know she’s going through it, but I know that we’re never given more than we can handle and that she is going to crush this.”
During the interview, Isabella revealed that she first noticed symptoms of her brain tumor when starting her freshman year at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
“I didn’t notice anything was off ’til probably like Oct. 1,” she said. “That’s when I definitely noticed headaches, nausea, couldn’t walk straight.”
Initially dismissing it as vertigo, Isabella’s health took a severe turn on October 25 when she woke up in the early hours “throwing up blood.” Urged by her family, she sought immediate medical attention.
“That was when we decided, ‘You need to really go get a thorough checkup.’ And thank goodness for the doctor. I feel like this doctor saved her life because she was thorough enough to say, ‘Let’s do the full checkup,’” explained Michael.
Following a full MRI at Cedars-Sinai, doctors identified a rapidly growing tumor in the back of Isabella’s brain, measuring 4 centimeters—larger than a golf ball.
“It didn’t feel real,” he said after learning of the tumor. “I don’t really remember much. I just remember trying to figure out how to get to [Los Angeles] ASAP.”
Michael Strahan temporarily left GMA to support his daughter during her health crisis, with ABC stating he was dealing with “personal family matters” at the time.
Michael noted that while medulloblastoma is common, with around 500 children diagnosed yearly, it’s considered “rare” for someone her age.
“It’s still scary because it’s still so much to go through,” he confessed. “And the hardest thing to get over is to think that she has to go through this herself.”
After her surgery, Isabella underwent multiple rounds of radiation treatment and a month of rehabilitation.
“I got to ring the bell yesterday,” Isabella said. “It was great. It was very exciting because it’s been a long 30 sessions, six weeks.”
According to reports, Isabella plans on documenting her journey in a new YouTube series to benefit Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center.
“It’s been like, two months of keeping it quiet, which is definitely difficult. I don’t wanna hide it anymore ’cause it’s hard to always keep in,” she said on GMA. “I hope to just kind of be a voice, and be [someone] who maybe [those who] are going through chemotherapy or radiation can look at.”
She added that her diagnosis has given her a new outlook on life. “Perspective is a big thing,” she said. “I’m grateful. I am grateful just to walk or see friends or do something, ’cause when you can’t do something, it really impacts you.”
“You learn that you’re probably not as strong as you thought you were when you have to really think about the real things, and I realized that I need support from everybody,” Michael added. “You think, ‘I’m the athlete, the tough guy, you know, I can come and handle, I’m the father in the family.’ It is not about any of that. It doesn’t matter. And it’s really made me change my perspective on so many things in my life.”
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