‘Real Housewives Of Orange County’ Alum Jeana Keough Turns 71 Amid Tongue Cancer Fight as Fellow Bravo Star Asks Fans to ‘Keep Her in Your Prayers’

Now she’s fighting tongue cancer, having been diagnosed after initially dismissing a lump on her tongue for months. Her treatment has included surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

Judge, Keough’s former “RHOC” co-star and longtime friend, marked the birthday with a carousel of photos on Instagram, asking fans to continue supporting Keough as she undergoes treatment.

Keough’s children have also shown their support: her son Shane Keough shared a photo of his mom to his Instagram Story, writing “some birthdays mean more than others,” while daughter Kara Keough Bosworth—who first shared news of her mother’s diagnosis in July — has continued rallying fans behind the family’s GoFundMe for her treatment.

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A post shared by Tamra Judge (@tamrajudge)

Keough marked her birthday by sharing a personalized, illustrated birthday graphic on her own Instagram, styled around her identity as a “Mother, Mimi and Movie Star” and featuring a director’s chair, a Walk of Fame star, and a real family photo with her grandkids tucked into the design.

Fans and followers used the comments to send birthday wishes wrapped in healing energy, with one calling her an “OG queen” and sending positive vibes her way, while another offered birthday blessings.

Another fan added to the wave of support and an uplifting comment on Judge’s post, writing,” Big prayers for Jeana, may God heal her and guide her! Amen. My sister had oral cancer and has been cancer free for 20+ years.”

It appears Keough celebrated with an in-person gathering ahead of her actual birthday, as one fan noted in the comments on Judge’s post, sharing how meaningful it was to meet both of them at “Jeana’s birthday celebration” the day before. Judge responded warmly, calling it a great day and telling the fan it was nice to meet them too.

“I love seeing the OC OGs standing beside one another in tough times. God bless Jeanna,” another fan added.

Keough’s birthday comes about two months after her daughter, former “RHOC” star Kara Keough Bosworth,” shared what led to her mom’s diagnosis in a GoFundMe, which has raised more than $76,000.

Bosworth revealed that a few months prior, while her mother was visiting her in Florida, Keough had been dealing with a “painful spot on her tongue.”

“She assumed a tooth had been rubbing against it and had even gone to the dentist multiple times to have the tooth filed down. I asked her how long the sore had been there. She paused, thought about it, and realized it had been nearly a year,” Bosworth recounted. “A biopsy confirmed our worst fear: squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue.”

Bosworth then revealed that her mom’s surgery escalated into a full cancer battle involving chemo, radiation and immunotherapy, and that recent complications — including two weeks without eating, a DVT clot, and an infection — forced doctors to pause treatment and delay a planned feeding-tube surgery.

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A post shared by Jeana Keough (@jeanakeough)

An update shared on on Bosworth’s GoFundMe on Sept. 15, revealed her mom’s neck as “healed beautifully on the outside, and thankfully, she no longer has the painful, oozing burns from radiation.”

She explained further, “Her tongue function, however, is still severely limited, which continues to make eating and swallowing a real challenge. She’s working on taking small sips of water and, at this point, should ideally be drinking about two glasses a day, but she isn’t quite there yet.

“For now, her feeding tube remains her only reliable source of nutrition and adequate hydration, as well as the primary way she takes her medications. We are starting to see little glimpses of her energy coming back, which has been really encouraging. She still tires very easily, though, and even a doctor’s appointment or a visit from friends or family can leave her needing to sleep for most of the day afterward.”

Keough’s daughter also noted that her mom got a blonde wig and that the family is now hoping doctors will clear her to travel to Florida.

“We need prayers for that little tongue to get it’s grove back, enabling her to eat and speak more clearly. There is still a long road ahead, but we’re grateful to see some healing, a little more energy, and small signs of progress along the way,” she concluded.

Family Love and Support Make a World of Difference During Cancer Treatment

Milestones After Cancer

Cancer warriors tend to gain an added sense of gratitude along their cancer journeys. When milestone moments arise, either during or after a cancer battle, they have a more significant meaning.

According to Cancer.net, patients and their support groups filled with loved ones may engage in some activities to help recognize and celebrate memorable milestones. These activities include planning a nice dinner or party-like gathering and spending time donating money or volunteering to a cancer charity. Perhaps the way you memorialize your cancer milestone could be independent of others. Examples include a solitary walk-in nature and allowing your senses to take hold while you reflect.

Tongue Cancer: A Type of Head & Neck Cancer

According to Cedars-Sinai, several types of cancer develop in the tongue, with the most common being squamous cell carcinoma—the type Keough is battling.,

The two types of tongue cancer are:

• Cancer of the oral tongue, which consists of the front two-thirds of the tongue that you can stick out
• Cancer of the base of the tongue, the area which is the back one-third of the tongue that extends down the throat

Although some people may be diagnosed with tongue cancer and have no risk factors, Cedars-Sinai says this type of cancer is most commonly found in adults 40 years old and up. Men are also twice as likely to be diagnosed with tongue cancer.

Other risk factors include:

• Smoking [smokers are 5x more likely to develop tongue cancer than nonsmokers]
• Drinking alcohol
• Human papillomavirus (HPV)

African-American men also have a greater risk than caucasians.

Tongue cancer may be hard to spot in its early stages, however it’s important to be aware of the symptoms, as catching the disease earlier will lead to an easier treatment path.

Symptoms might include:

• An unusual lump on the side of the tongue
• An ulcer-like lump, of a grayish-pink to red color
• A lump that bleeds easily when touched
• Trouble swallowing
• Voice changes
• Pain in the ear
• Pain in the throat
• Feeling of fullness in the throat

HPV and Cancer Risk: The Basics

Throat cancer is usually diagnosed through X-rays, CT scans, and PET scans. A diagnosis also often requires a biopsy.

For tongue cancer treatment, surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy are usually done.

It’s much more common to know someone who has a head or neck cancer, like tongue cancer, now-a-days than it was several decades ago. And that’s because of its strong connection to the human papillomavirus, also known as HPV, which is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States.

“From the 1980s to the 2010s, the rate of HPV-related head and neck cancers has gone up by 300 percent,” Dr. Ted Teknos, a head and neck cancer specialist at University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center in Cleveland, Ohio, told SurvivorNet during a previous interview.

The vast majority of people in the United States — both men and women — will eventually get infected with HPV, according to Dr. Allen Ho, a head and neck surgeon at Cedars-Sinai.

“The important thing to know about HPV is that there are many different strains, and only a couple of them tend to be more cancer-inducing,” he told SurvivorNet.

“Probably less than 1% of the population who get infected happen to have the cancer-causing virus that somehow their immune system fails to clear, and over 15 to 20 years it develops from a viral infection into a tumor, and a cancer.”

It’s unclear whether HPV alone is enough to trigger the changes in your cells that lead to head and neck cancers, or whether this happens in combination with other risk factors like smoking.

Protecting Against HPV

Nearly 80 million Americans have HPV today, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It impacts men and women and won’t cause problems for most people.

However, in a small percentage of cases, it can lead to cancer.

The HPV vaccine is recommended to protect against HPV and, therefore, HPV-related cancers.

RELATED: “Breakthrough” is a film about the life of Dr. Jim Allison and his Nobel Prize-winning work in immunotherapy and its profound impact on reducing cancer mortality.

Gardasil 9 is an HPV vaccine that offers protection against “nine HPV types: the two low-risk HPV types that cause most genital warts, plus seven high-risk HPV types that cause most HPV-related cancer,” according to the National Cancer Institute.

The vaccine creates an immune response to HPV 16, the primary cause of 92% of head and neck cancers. Once children are vaccinated, they cannot be infected with that strain. For parents, the HPV vaccine enables them to protect their children from developing cancer in the future.

“The key with the vaccine is that you receive it before you have sexual encounters,” Dr. Jessica Geiger, a medical oncologist at Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet.  “So that’s why these vaccines are approved for young children, ages 9, 10, 11 years old, up to age 26.”

The HPV vaccine is recommended for all male and female preteens 11 to 12 years old in two doses given between six and 12 months, according to the CDC. The series of shots can also start as young as 9.

The CDC also notes that teens and young adults through age 26 who didn’t start or finish the HPV vaccine series also need the vaccine.

Additionally, people with weakened immune systems or teens and young adults between 15 and 26 who started the series should get three doses instead of two.

Although adults up to 45 can still receive the vaccine, it’s not recommended for everyone older than 26. Still, a person older than 26 could choose to get vaccinated after talking to their doctor about possible benefits, even despite it being less effective in this age range, as more people have already been exposed to HPV by this point.

WATCH: Should children get the HPV Vaccine?

Vaccine hesitancy can impede people from getting the vaccine. The concern may come from parents who may feel the vaccine paves the way for early sexual activity. For this reason, some health practitioners are educating the public about the vaccine differently.

“I think rebranding the vaccine as a cancer vaccine, rather than an STD vaccine, is critically important,” says Dr. Teknos, who believes concerted efforts to “change the mindset around the vaccine” can make a difference.

Remember To Ask Questions

When faced with a cancer diagnosis, it’s crucial to ask your doctor informed questions to understand your condition, treatment options, and coping strategies. These questions can serve as a starting point for your discussion with your doctor so you can feel empowered and informed as you navigate your cancer journey.

SurvivorNet’s “My Health Questions” AI tool helps patients and caregivers better understand cancer screenings and treatment options by providing clinically grounded answers and personalized questions for upcoming doctor visits.

WATCH: How One Cancer Survivor and Her Sister Used “My Health Questions” to Navigate Care

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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