Michael Strahan’s daughter Isabella is giving insight into her recent multi-day hospitalization after coming down with a fever following her first round of chemotherapy.
The 19-year-old gave fans an update on her battle with brain cancer Tuesday on her YouTube, where she has been documenting her journey since having emergency surgery to remove a malignant brain tumor — known as a medulloblastoma — in October 2023.
“It’s my third day here. I got here on Sunday,” she explained. “I’ve just been getting a lot of fevers and if you get a fever of 100.4 you have to come in.”
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The teenager included footage from her “first transfusion,” showing her lying in a hospital bed while attached to several different machines. Despite the discomfort, Isabella tried to distract herself by playing games on her phone.
She later got a sweet visit from a therapy dog named Lion, who came dressed in a mystical costume.
Isabella then got an MRI of her eyes and had her chemo port cleaned before finally being cleared to go home — only to end up back at the hospital “a few hours later.”
“I catfished everyone. We left the hospital after three or four days and now we’re back less than 12 hours later because I have a fever again,” she said.
“I got a fever of 102 and had to come back in. So we’re trying to figure out what’s wrong but no one can find out what’s wrong,” she continued. “This is the worst fever I think I’ve had.”
Isabella explained that she had a “really bad headache” and “thought nothing of it” until taking her temperature.
Despite begrudgingly being readmitted to the hospital, Isabella came prepared with coloring pages and “Criminal Minds” to keep her entertained.
“I don’t feel great. I don’t feel horrible,” she admitted. “I’ve felt worse but I don’t feel good. I feel like I can barely walk now.”
Isabella noted that her mobility severely “declined” from the days prior when she was able to do “laps” around the hospital.
“My port has really hurt, too,” she added. “When I was getting my actual chemo I couldn’t feel it. Now — when they were accessing it with a needle … I felt like she was trying to break my ribs — and now it’s just so painful and sore when I stand.”
The model was joined by her father, who quietly sat in the corner of the room, and the former NFL star’s girlfriend, Kayla Quick, who acted as Isabella’s videographer.
The teen ended the vlog by revealing she had to undergo “last-minute” surgery “to drain fluid from the back [her] head.”
“They are just going to stick a needle in my head and drain it,” she explained.
“I’ll be under anesthesia but still very, very … not what I was planning to do,” Isabella continued. “Because I didn’t plan on coming back to the hospital.”
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Isabella ended the video with a clip of her being wheeled into surgery alongside her dad; however, she didn’t reveal how things went.
Although it’s unclear exactly when her hospital stay and surgery took place, Michael, 52, seemingly spoke about the difficult experience on “Good Morning America” last month.
Talking to co-anchors Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos, Michael admitted that it has been “tough” watching his daughter in pain while she bravely battles the disease.
“The last three days have been a little rough because she had a fever that kind of comes and goes,” he explained.
“I had to take her to the hospital and thought she’d come home a few hours later. … It’s been three days, but hopefully, she’ll be home today.”
Michael, who called Isabella a “tough young lady,” is also dad to daughter Tanita, 32, son Michael Jr., 29, and daughter Sophia, Isabella’s twin.
