Alexis Ohanian is opening up about his recent health scare after discovering “some suspicious nodules” on his thyroid. The 41-year-old Reddit cofounder, who is married to tennis legend Serena Williams, took to Instagram on Thursday, Nov. 28, to reveal he had undergone preventative surgery to remove half of his thyroid after “tracking” the nodules for the past four years.
“The nodules were getting bigger & the latest biopsy revealed they’d very likely turn cancerous,” Ohanian wrote on Instagram. “My mom had breast cancer around this age (41) and then ultimately died from brain cancer a decade or so later. I hate cancer.”
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“I wasn’t gonna take any chances,” he continued of his decision to go through with the surgery, which he soon learned could have been a lifesaver. “I’m extra grateful this Thanksgiving because I got the call this morning that my now-removed-half-of-thyroid was indeed full of some gnarly nodules that were very likely to become cancerous,” he wrote.
Sharing photos of himself in his hospital bed alongside photos of him with his and Williams’ two daughters, 6-year-old Olympia and 1-year-old Adira, Ohanian wrote that the “worst part” of his surgery “has been not being able to lift for 2 weeks,” assuring his followers that “big fella will be back at it next week and I took my girls to Disney World this week so life is wonderful.”
The tech giant concluded with a plea for men to get checked regularly: “To my fellow men — make those doctor’s appointments — especially if y’all are dads,” he wrote. “Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.”
Last month, Ohanian and Williams, 43, celebrated seven years of marriage with heartfelt tributes to one another on social media. “7 years has gone so fast… Happy anniversary @alexisohanian. Thank you for being the best dad to our girls @olympiaohanian and @adiraohanian,” Williams wrote alongside a photo of her family all sporting costumes together. “Thanks for also making average November day a costume party and making it special.” Ohanian commented sweetly on the post, “Thank you for blessing me with the two best humans we ever met,” adding a heart for emphasis.
On his own profile, Ohanian shared a picture of his family on a trip to New Orleans. “7 years ago today, we got married here. Now we get to bring these two for beignets. Happy Anniversary,” he captioned the photo. “Thanks for giving me the two greatest humans we’ve ever met. You’re an amazing mama. I’m very lucky to have met you.”
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