Rehashing an Unfortunate Cancer Scandal
- Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum Teddi Mellencamp, 40, daughter of legendary singer John Mellencamp, has taken to Twitter to call out Vicki Gunvalson, 60, a veteran from the original OC series.
- Teddi is lashing out about the “cancer scandal” that Vicki was allegedly involved in with her ex, Brooks Ayers, who was found to have faked medical records saying that he was a cancer patient with stage 3 non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
- Whatever the real story is, bottom line is cancer is certainly no joke, and we would like to at least take this opportunity to educate about lymphoma. There are more than 40 different types of the disease. Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma are the main two sub-categories with the latter being more common.
RHOBH alum Teddi Mellencamp, 40, daughter of legendary singer John Mellencamp, has taken to Twitter to call out Vicki Gunvalson, 60, a veteran from the original OC series. Chicago-born Vicki has been starring in a spin-off show called The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: Ex Wives Club.
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Any other fans watching I Love That for You on Showtime with Vanessa Bayer? It’s about a girl who scams were way into a job by lying about having cancer. Just feels so familiar.”
Ouch.
Vicki replied to the tweet later that day. “Wow…Low blow! You know nothing about what transpired with my x. This is why you only lasted 3 years… ME…14!”
“Fans” weighed in with some not-so-nice comments suggesting that Vicki only stayed relevant by having a different partner every season, and many did not buy into her claim that she was not involved with this unfortunate cancer-gate.
“Vicki we all know that you knew Brooks was lying. No one sends the love of their life alone to do chemotherapy. No one.”
Apparently it was Vicki that started the feud when she went on Teddi and housewife favorite Tamra Judge’s podcast Two T’s in a Pod. The women started snipping at each other after Vicki bashed Teddi in an interview, and so, well, here we are.
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To call Vicki out even further, Teddi responded on the chain with another mic drop. “Well if we're talking numbers, could you let us all know where you were on January 6th?” seemingly insinuating she was a part of the historic disgrace of people storming the U.S. Capitol building. Vicki is a known Donald Trump supporter, so at the very least, Teddi was alleging that she was in favor of what went down. The far right were insistent that the election “was stolen” when President Joe Biden won, so that was a major motive of the Jan. 6, 2021 riot as tensions rose throughout the COVID-era election.
Whatever the real story is, bottom line is cancer is certainly no joke, and we would like to at least take this opportunity to educate about this type of lymphoma while Housewives and their fans continue to argue about these topics online. Whew!
Learning About Lymphoma
Lymphoma is a type of blood cancer. Blood cancers can affect the bone marrow, blood cells, lymph nodes and other parts of the lymphatic system. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society reports that every 3 minutes, one person in the U.S. is diagnosed with a blood cancer.
More specifically, lymphoma is a cancer of the immune system that begins in the white blood cells called lymphocytes. Lymphoma begins when lymphocytes develop a genetic mutation that makes them multiply much faster than normal. This mutation also forces older cells that would normally die to stay alive. From there, the quickly multiplying lymphocytes collect and build up in your lymph nodes, the small glands in your neck, armpits, and other parts of your body.
Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma It's More Than Just One Type
There are more than 40 different types of the disease. Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma are the main two sub-categories with the latter being more common.
The type of white blood cells linked to the disease determines the distinction. If doctors are unable to detect the Reed-Sternberg cella giant cell derived from B lymphocytesthen the cancer is categorized as non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
You might be at a higher risk for lymphoma if you:
- Have been infected with the HIV or Epstein-Barr virus
- Had an organ transplant
- Have a family history of lymphoma
- Have been treated with radiation or chemotherapy drugs for cancer in the past
- Have an autoimmune disease
One thing to note about lymphomas is this type of cancer often creeps in quietly, without symptoms. And even when symptoms do show up, they don't necessarily point directly to cancer. In a previous interview with SurvivorNet, Dr. Elise Chong, a medical oncologist at Penn Medicine, explained that lymphoma symptoms could be difficult to detect.
Sneaky Lymphoma Symptoms Often Lead to a Late Diagnosis
"The symptoms of lymphoma, especially if you have a low-grade lymphoma, often are no symptoms," Dr. Chong explained. "People say, but I feel completely fine, and that's very normal."
People with lymphoma do not always have symptoms, but common ones are:
- Swollen glands in your neck, armpit or groin
- Fever
- Chills
- Night sweats
- Unexplained weight loss
- Feeling tired
- Swelling in your stomach
No matter what, it's important to communicate anything unusual happening to your body with your doctor. Even if there's nothing to worry about, it's good to rule out the possibility of more serious issues.
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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