TV presenter Maria Menounos has revealed the devastating news she has stage two cancer as she expects her first child with husband Keven Undergaro.
The 44-year-old announced she was diagnosed with stage two pancreatic cancer in January underwent a secret surgery the following month to remove a 3.9cm tumour.
She also had part of her pancreas, her spleen, a fibroid and 17 lymph nodes removed.
Maria, who previously hosted E! News, confirmed that the surgery was a success and is hopeful she does not need chemotherapy or any additional treatment. Instead, she must now get an annual scan for the next five years.
She revealed the situation has made her "appreciate" her child "so much more" as she expects a baby girl with her hubby via a surrogate.
The pair had been trying for a child for almost 10 years and she previously revealed she had tried "literally everything" to get pregnant.
Now, the pair who have been married since 2017, are excited for their future as a three.
It could have been so much different, however, if Maria's cancer wasn't caught early on and because of that she is urging people to make sure they get checkups.
Calling her initial news a "potential death sentence", Maria told PEOPLE: "Speaking about her diagnosis and condition with PEOPLE, the presenter said: "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 discovery came after a 2022 episode of "excruciating abdominal pain as well as diarrhoea". At the time, she was sent for a CT scan but nothing was uncovered. This had followed her Type 1 diabetes diagnosis - something which runs in her family.
As the pain in her abdomen continued, she had a full-body MRI which showed the mass on her pancreas.
Her latest diagnosis follows a number of other health scares for the presenter in recent years. In 2017 she had a brain tumour removed which was said to be the size of a golf ball.
The discovery came after she had been complaining of dizziness, headaches at slurred speech. It turned out the brain mass was meningioma, which is usually benign.
Her mum Litsa had died from brain cancer in 2021 aged 65.
Posting about her health battles on Instagram, Maria admitted she still hasn't come to grips with everything just yet, but is grateful to still be alive.
"For now I'll say how grateful I am to be able alive and well and that I WILL get to hold my baby !," she said in her lengthy post.
"Thank you God, St. Nectarios the healing saint, my doctors and nurses, and my family and friends who helped me through."
* Follow Mirror Celebs on Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
