Best-selling author Colleen Hoover has publicly shared that she is undergoing cancer treatment, revealing to fans that she is nearing the end of a course of radiotherapy. The 46-year-old novelist, whose emotionally driven romances have captivated millions of readers worldwide, opened up about her health in a series of candid social media posts.
Hoover, best known for her 2016 novel It Ends With Us, shared a selfie on Instagram Stories showing herself in a hospital gown. In the image, she updated fans on her treatment progress, writing: “Second to last day of radiation! I wish I could blame my hair and facial expressions on @Texas.Oncology, but they’ve been great. Hope you never need them, but highly recommend.” She confirmed that she had just one day of radiation remaining at Texas Oncology, but did not disclose the specific type of cancer she has been treated for.
The author first revealed her diagnosis in December in a Facebook post, explaining that the cancer had been surgically removed and that she would require radiation therapy but not chemotherapy. At the time, Hoover chose to keep further medical details private. “I just wasn’t ready to share with anyone until I knew what the outcome would be,” she wrote, adding that the experience had been “huge and scary for a bit.”
Hoover also connected her diagnosis to a period of recurring health issues she experienced while working on Reminders of Him, another of her novels currently being adapted for the big screen. She admitted that she delayed addressing her symptoms due to professional commitments. “I continued to put off [medical care] until the movie was finished,” she explained.
Her health struggles had already impacted her public appearances. In October, Hoover announced that she would miss several major work events, including the premiere of the film adaptation of her 2019 novel Regretting You. At the time, she cited “unavoidable surgery” as the reason she could not travel. “I’m super bummed,” she wrote then, “but I’ll live vicariously through you guys.”
In a more recent update shared on January 9, Hoover revealed that she had consulted a geneticist to better understand the cause of her cancer. According to the results, her illness was not inherited. “My cancer did not come from family genes,” she wrote. “It also didn’t come from the two main causes of the cancer, which are HPV and excessive hormones.” She added that doctors believe environmental and lifestyle factors—such as stress, lack of exercise, and diet—were more likely contributors.
