Teddi Mellencamp has undergone surgery to remove multiple melanomas from her back.
The 41-year-old reality TV star was diagnosed with stage two skin cancer when her doctor discovered an "abnormal spot" on her back and she went under the knife earlier this week to have the melanomas removed along with some lymph nodes and she posted an update online vowing to "kick this cancer’s a**".
In a message shared on Instagram, she wrote: "Lots of questions about updates. Here is the truth; there isn’t one, which may be one of the hardest parts about this. The waiting. Yesterday, I had surgery. I had melanomas removed. I had lymph nodes that lit up so they were also removed and additional biopsies are being done. Hopefully I will get those results soon. Next Wednesday I will get a full genetic mutation testing done for BRCA2, etc."
The 'Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' star went on to thank fans for all their messages as well as her family, friends and her husband Edwin Arroyave for supporting her through such a difficult time.
She added: "I don’t share this for sympathy- I am sharing because one of the things that keeps me going through all of this is your messages telling me you are getting tested.
"I am grateful to my family, friends and husband who welcomed my pain and anxiety with open arms. I [love] you all so much and I just know I am going to kick this cancer’s a** - with the help of my incredible doctors and nurses of course."
She concluded her post by writing: "I am giving myself permission to crash on the days I need to and work my butt off on the rest, showing up for me, my family and all my streams of work to reach new goals. Life comes in waves and we will always be stronger for it … on the good days and the bad."
After going public with her diagnosis earlier this month, Teddi urged others not to skip skin cancer check-ups and to take better care of their skin.
She wrote in an online update: "I continue to share this journey because I was a 90s teen, putting baby oil and iodine on my skin to tan it. Never wearing sunscreen or getting my moles checked until I was 40 years old. This has been such a wakeup call for me, and I hope to all of you, to love and protect the skin you’re in [sic]."
