June "Mama June" Shannon has spoken out about her daughter Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell's cancer diagnosis for the first time.
In March, the 28-year-old, who starred with her family on Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, confirmed on Instagram that she has been diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma. In a new interview, Mama June shared a health update about Anna—the eldest of her four daughters and mom to daughters Kaitlyn, 10, and Kylee, 7—saying she is about to undergo her third round of chemotherapy.
"The second round has been really more rough on her," the star of the upcoming docuseries Mama June: Family in Crisis told Entertainment Tonight in a May 4 sit-down. "She lost all of her hair."
In an Instagram Live session in March, Anna held up a bunch of fallen hair as large as her face as she discussed her cancer battle, saying that chemotherapy makes her feel nauseous. In her interview, Mama June also said her daughter "sleeps a lot this round" and "doesn't want to eat some days."
The 43-year-old said Anna was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma this past February. "It's a rare cancer. It's very aggressive," she said. "It's in her lung, her liver, her kidneys and her spleen, all on the left side."
Mama June said she and other family members—including her daughters Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson, 17, Lauryn "Pumpkin" Efird, 23, and Jessica "Chubbs" Shannon, 26—have been supporting Anna amid her treatment, and also spoke of the difficult conversations they've had in light of her diagnosis.
"We know what could happen and her children know that, which is sad," she said. "Her 10-year-old knows more of it than her 7-year-old does."
Mama June also spoke about the emotional toll her daughter's illness has taken on her personally. "There's days where I don't know whether to scream or get mad or get angry or be happy. Some days you've got to put on that [happy] face and say, 'Hey, how'ya doin'?'"