"Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" and "Toddlers & Tiaras" alum Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson has confirmed that her elder sister has a rare cancer.
"& this is what I mean when I say you never truly know what somebody is going through at home. no matter how famous they are," the 17-year-old wrote Thursday in an Instagram story.
"yes, I'm very famous but normal s— happens to me and my family & y'all need to realize that asap," she added.
Thompson's post included a screenshot and link to a TMZ report that her sister Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell had been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. She did not elaborate on the report beyond the caption, and representatives for Cardwell did not immediately respond to the L.A. Times' request for comment.
Cardwell is Thompson's half-sister and the eldest daughter of their mother, June Shannon, the famous stage mom known as "Mama June" who co-starred with her children in several TLC reality series.
Her 28-year-old daughter reportedly complained of stomach aches before being diagnosed in January with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma, which was discovered in her liver, kidney and lung following a series of tests. TMZ reported that Cardwell underwent her first round of chemotherapy last month and her family is "very hopeful" that she'll pull through.
Cardwell shares two children, 10-year-old Kaitlyn and 7-year-old Kylee, with ex-husband Michael Cardwell.
Thompson and her reality TV family, who have courted several controversies over the years, saw their marquee series "Here Comes Honey Boo" canceled in 2014 amid a scandal in which Shannon reportedly dated a convicted child molester, who allegedly molested one of her daughters. Both Thompson and Shannon have since appeared on reality competition series, including "Dancing with the Stars" and "The Masked Singer."
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