Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson Breaks Silence on Sister Anna ‘Chickadee’ Cardwell’s Stage 4 Cancer Diagnosis

Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson has broken her silence on her family’s health crisis shortly after news surfaced of her sister Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell’s stage 4 adrenal carcinoma diagnosis. The Here Comes Honey Boo Boo alum, 17, took to her Instagram Thursday to share a screenshot of the TMZ article that broke the news about her sister’s health with a reminder to her followers.

“This is what I mean when I say you never truly know what somebody is going through at home. No matter how famous they are,” she wrote alongside the screenshot. “Yes, I’m very famous, but normal s— happens to me and my family [and] y’all need to realize that ASAP.”  While Cardwell has yet to address the reports about her health publicly, TMZ‘s source said that the family is “very hopeful” that the 28-year-old will be able to beat her cancer diagnosis after first being given the news in January.

The outlet continued that the cancer was discovered in Cardwell’s liver, kidney and lung after a series of tests looking into the source of her persistent stomachaches. Cardwell reportedly underwent her first round of chemotherapy last month and is waiting to see what her doctors say about her progress before moving forward with any major decisions. 

Cardwell and Thompson first appeared alongside their mother, Mama June Shannon, 43, on TLC Toddlers & Tiaras back in 2019, and were joined by siblings Jessica “Chubbs” Shannon, 26, and Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird, 23, when the family received its own spinoff, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, in 2012, which was followed by Mama June: From Not to Hot in 2017. 

Since appearing on her family’s series, Cardwell has become a mother of two, welcoming daughter Kaitlyn Elizabeth in 2012 and daughter Kylee Madison in 2015 with ex-husband Michael Cardwell. While the reality personality was married from 2014 to 2017, the mother of two most recently was linked with boyfriend Eldridge Toney, with whom she went Instagram official in April 2019. Cardwell posted on Instagram just two days before her health news broke, sharing her first post since July 2022. “Well I ain’t posted here in a while,” she wrote. “Your girl is back sorry for the photo dump that’s going to happen hahah I love y’all and I hope y’all hope y’all are having a good week #imback #2023 #tiktok.”