Reality star Teddi Mellencamp is once again turning a deeply personal health battle into a platform for awareness and resilience. The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast member recently opened up about her ongoing fight with skin cancer that metastasized to her brain, sharing emotional updates with fans as she navigates a series of treatments and procedures. Recently, she discussed her doctors telling her she has a 50% chance of survival. Here’s what she said.
Teddi Mellencamp of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fame recently opened up about her brain cancer prognosis. The daughter of legendary singer John Mellencamp was first diagnosed with cancer in 2022, when she was diagnosed with stage 2 melanoma. In February 2025, doctors discovered she had several tumors in her brain as a result of the melanoma. Her cancer reached stage 4 just a few months later.
Teddi discussed the situation with ABC News’ Nightline in April 2025. “One of my favorite things to ask is, ‘How long I got?’ Or, ‘What are my chances?’ And they oftentimes say, ’50/50,’” she said. “I wouldn’t buy a car that’s only gonna drive 50% of the time. I don’t want this.”
Doctors told Teddi she only has a “50/50” chance of survival because of how new the immunotherapy treatments are.
“[My doctor’s] like, ‘No, it’s only because that’s how long immunotherapy has been around, so that’s how long the study has worked.’ … Immunotherapy has only been around 10 years,” she continued. “I really like to have control, and this is completely out of my control, and for the first time, I’m like, really scared.”
Teddi recalled the day her estranged husband, Edwin Arroyave, rushed her to the hospital.
“I could barely get down the stairs,” she said. “That’s when they said I had four plump-sized tumors in my brain. And then within the next day, I was in surgery. … My first real memory was looking up, and my entire family was there … my dad, my sister, my brothers, all of my best friends. And I remember being like, ‘Hold on. Why are y’all here? This must be bad.'”
Teddi Mellencamp is keeping active while dealing with a grim cancer prognosis
Teddi Mellencamp can no longer go for runs due to her cancer. However, she keeps active in the ways she can. In a video she shared with Nightline, she’s seen tearing up while walking on her treadmill.
“I’m just trying to remember how grateful I am that I can move my body again,” she says in the clip.
“I can’t run, but I can go on a walk,” she told Nightline. “And, paparazzi, please quit taking pictures of me on these walks!”
So, what keeps Teddi going? “I would say the biggest thing for me is setting a goal,” she explained. “So, like, we have our horse nationals. And, the second that my daughter and I got in, I made a goal that I’m going to start getting back to training so that I could do it too. … I wanted to have the opportunity to do it with her just in case this is my last chance.”
She said her father is planning her burial in Indiana
Teddi Mellencamp is staying strong as she deals with stage 4 cancer. However, she joked that her famous father, John Mellencamp, is already planning her burial.
“Yesterday, my dad calls 11 times in a row. Finally, I answer. I’m like, ‘I’m in the bath. Let me live a little.’ He goes, ‘I just want to make sure you’re going to be in our group family mausoleum,'” she said on the Two T’s In A Pod podcast.
The reality star asked her father if there’d be enough space for her three kids to be buried there as well.
“There’s going to be the top five, and then we’re gonna have little areas around it, and then that’s where everyone’s going to get buried,” John told her.
As for the immediacy of the situation, her father said, “You’re doing your will right now, so you may as well put it in there.”
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