Maria Menounos has held many jobs and many titles. She is an Emmy Award-winning TV host, reporter, author, podcaster, and sometimes professional wrestler. You may recognize her as host of Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, and E! News and as a reporter for The Today Show. Menounos has faced two major health challenges in recent years: a brain tumor in 2017 and a rare form of pancreatic cancer in 2023.
For the pancreatic cancer, she underwent a grueling 10-hour surgery to remove part of her pancreas, her spleen, 17 lymph nodes, and a massive fibroid. Thankfully the procedure was successful. During this time, she also took on new roles as a mother and health advocate. Menounos talked with NIH MedlinePlus Magazine about her journey living with cancer and how she is working to help others take charge of their own health.
You were diagnosed with a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor, a rare form of pancreatic cancer. What symptoms were you having that got you to check it out?
I knew something wasn’t right. I had been feeling pain in my upper left abdomen and experiencing a lot of bloating. I had an endoscopy and a colonoscopy, but my doctors couldn’t find the answer. The pain got progressively worse—sometimes it was so bad that I would buckle over in extreme pain. I later got a CT scan, but the doctors still couldn’t pinpoint the problem. Then, by chance, I met someone who told me I should get a full body scan. They discovered a large mass on my pancreas and sent me directly to the hospital. It ended up being a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor. Stage 2 cancer.
What was your reaction when you received your diagnosis?
My reaction was complete shock and terror. I was numb. I looked at the radiologist and said, “So I'm a goner, right?” Because everything I’d ever heard about the pancreas and tumors is that you don't have a lot of time. It was especially tough to hear at that moment because after years of me and my husband trying to have children, we were a few months away from having a child via a surrogate. I really was in disbelief and terrified.
How important has family been in your cancer journey?
I was so scared to tell my dad when this happened. We had gone through so much at that point. My mom had just passed away from stage 4 brain cancer, and before my pancreatic tumor, I was also treated for a brain tumor that turned out to be benign (noncancerous). I just didn't think my dad could take it. But something really amazing happened! Not only did he handle the news, but he was also an incredible caregiver and really helped me. And we formed an even bigger, stronger relationship as a result.
Of course, my husband has been the ultimate support through all my health journeys. He’s taking care of all of us. I can’t say enough about my family and friends who have been there for me.
How are you doing now?
It was really a rough and tough journey. But I'm so grateful to be healthy and alive and to have seen my baby born and to be able to celebrate every milestone with her. I feel so grateful. Every time I get good news from my oncologist, I’m silently saying prayers and thanking God for my health and my healing.
You are vocal about early detection—why is early diagnosis so important?
I was lucky to be diagnosed relatively early. Pancreatic cancer and other neuroendocrine tumors are so dangerous because most people don't ever feel anything until it's too late. And so early diagnosis is really, really important. Don’t take symptoms lightly, especially if they persist. You have to keep sounding the alarms, you have to keep searching for answers.
What led you to advocate for others facing pancreatic cancer?
After my brain tumor, it was definitely nerve-wracking to get another scary diagnosis. And so I knew I couldn't keep it a secret. I needed to share it. This is what I do every single day with my podcast, Heal Squad.* I'm sharing information and helping people through their journeys as I help myself through my own. We teach people how to advocate for themselves and give them tools to think differently. You have to be the CEO of your health and take charge of it. Those lessons helped me through my journey.
Menounos and her husband Keven Undergaro welcomed their daughter Athena via surrogacy the same year as Maria’s cancer diagnosis.
What is your advice to others facing a cancer diagnosis or other health challenges?
My biggest advice is to surround yourself with people who have survived and thrived and prepare yourself with information that will enrich you, educate you, and lift you. We are more than a diagnosis. I feel like a lot of us start anticipating and thinking the worst in those moments. And I did, too. But I quickly shifted my mindset to wonder over worry— that life is happening for me, not to me. I believe that we can help ourselves along this journey, make it easier with how we react and handle things. I would love to share hope. Anything is possible.
What have you been working on lately that you can share?
I was in a movie called Christmas at Plumhill Manor, which premiered on Lifetime over the holidays, that I'm really excited about. And my podcast, Heal Squad, is my most important mission.
*NIH was not involved in the creation of the project, and reference to it does not constitute or imply endorsement by any federal agency.
