After years of personal struggles, Dance Moms‘ star Abby Lee Miller is finally able to share some good news.
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On Wednesday, the former Lifetime reality personality appeared on Extra to provide an update following a recent medical procedure. Miller, 55, was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma in 2018. She underwent ten rounds of chemotherapy and had lifesaving surgery on her spine, but the latter left her wheelchair-bound.
Recently, she decided on follow-up elective surgery to relieve pain and help her walk again. She was joined by her doctors, Dr. Hooman Melamed and Dr. Christopher Boudakian of the California Rehabilitation Institute, to share her post-op progress.
“Because she got all this chemo, her bone quality was not the best,” explained Melamed. “I’m not going to lie; it was a very tough surgery to reconstruct, the nerve was extremely compressed, and you had to do a lot of work, way more than you normally would.”
“She’s really come a long way,” added Boudakian. “It’s really a testament to her strength and her will to get back on her feet… She is now able to stand from the chair and walk, what did you do, about 100, 150 feet?”
“150 feet today,” said Miller.
Miller’s previous revelation about her diagnosis was heartbreaking. “Why didn’t the ER Doctors on duty do their jobs?” she asked. “I came in twice with the same symptoms? Why didn’t somebody listen to me, the patient?”
To make matters worse, her illness was also just one example in a series of unfortunate events. In 2017, she served a 10-month prison sentence for fraud. And in June, following charges of racist behavior by Miller, Dance Moms and its spin-offs were canceled by Lifetime. Perhaps the challenges have given her a new perspective on her past behavior. In her most recent Instagram pic, she brought a vibe of optimism and humor. We hope it’s a sign that she’s turned over a new leaf.
“I get everyone I believe in on TV!” she wrote in the caption, referring to Boudakian and Melamed. “Hehehehe – even if they’re not great dancers!”
For more on the interview, check out the clip: