Michael Strahan on daughter's brain cancer battle: 'We're never given more than we can handle'

HealthTop 3

Jan 11

By Leslie Tate // People & Stories // EEW Magazine Online

Receiving a brain tumor diagnosis is alarming, devastating, and a lot to handle.

Yet, Michael Strahan, beloved "Good Morning America" co-host, whose 19-year-old daughter Isabella courageously revealed on Thursday that she is currently fighting medulloblastoma, a malignant brain tumor, says “We’re never given more than we can handle.”

In a raw, emotional, and heart-wrenching interview with Robin Roberts, the 52-year-old former NY Giants football player, who is leaning into his faith at this difficult time, expressed his immense gratitude and love for his strong daughter.

GMA co-anchor Michael Strahan and his daughter Isabella sit down with Robin Roberts on "Good Morning America" Jan. 11. (Photo Credit: Heidi Gutman/ABC)

"I truly believe that I am the luckiest man in the world because of my amazing daughter," he said. "I know she's going through it, but I know that we're never given more than we can handle and that she is going to crush this."

This unexpected battle with brain cancer began during Isabella's freshman year at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles when she first began experiencing headaches. She shared with Roberts, "I didn't notice anything was off till probably like Oct. 1. That's when I definitely noticed headaches, nausea, couldn't walk straight."

Initially, Isabella thought it was just vertigo. However, her symptoms worsened on Oct. 25. "I woke up, probably at like, 1 p.m. I dreaded waking up. But I was throwing up blood,” she recounted. It was then that she reached out to her sister via text, who then informed their entire family, prompting Isabella to seek medical help.

Doctors discovered a rapidly-growing four-centimeter tumor, larger than a golf ball, at the back of her brain. Upon receiving the distressing news, Michael admitted that it felt surreal. "I don't really remember much," he said. "I just remember trying to figure out how to get to LA ASAP. And it just doesn't feel real. It just didn't feel real."

Medulloblastoma is a type of malignant tumor that accounts for nearly 20% of all childhood brain tumors, according to the Journal of Clinical Neuroscience. Each year about 500 children are diagnosed with this condition.

Michael Strahan's daughter Isabella was diagnosed with a brain tumor in October 2023. (Credit: Isabella Strahan)

However, this type of cancer is “rarely” diagnosed in “someone who's 18, 19 years old," Michael Strahan said, who described the experience as “scary because it's still so much to go through. And the hardest thing to get over is to think that she has to go through this herself."

Just before her 19th birthday on Oct. 27, Isabella underwent emergency surgery at Cedars-Sinai hospital to remove the mass. She courageously recovered with the assistance of her twin sister Sophia and had to relearn how to walk. Isabella also completed a month of rehabilitation and multiple rounds of radiation therapy.

Presently, she is feeling better but preparing for her next journey in February: chemotherapy at Duke Children's Hospital & Health Center in Durham, North Carolina. Isabella has bravely decided to partner with Duke and document her experience through a YouTube series, which will support Duke Children's Hospital.

Throughout this challenging time, both Michael and Isabella have gained a new understanding of life's priorities.

Michael shared, "You learn that you're probably not as strong as you thought you were when you have to really think about the real things, and I realized that I need support from everybody.”

Michael continued, "You think that I'm the athlete, the tough guy, you know, I can come and handle [it], I'm the father in the family. It is not about any of that. It doesn't matter. And it's really made me change my perspective on so many things in my life."

Isabella added, "Perspective is a big thing. I'm grateful. I am grateful just to walk or see friends or do something, 'cause when you can't do something, it like, really impacts you."

For now, Isabella is focusing on her future and getting back to normalcy once her treatments are completed. "I'm looking forward to getting back to college and moving back to California and just starting my school experience over. Not over, but just restarting, being back into a routine and something that's enjoyable," she said.

Watch the full interview below.