“Dance Moms” host Abby Lee Miller has been diagnosed with cancer. The reality TV star was discovered to have non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma two days after having an emergency surgery on her spine. Miller was initially thought to be suffering from an infection on her spine after she complained of “excruciating neck pain,” according to People.

Abby Lee Miller was taken to the Cedar Sinai Marina Del Rey Hospital on Tuesday (April 17) for an emergency operation on her spine. Radar Online reported that Dr. Hooman M. Melamed, an orthopedic spine surgeon, described Miller as “close to death” before she was rushed to the hospital.

The 51-year-old dance instructor and choreographer supposedly had no feeling in her hands and legs aside from having severe pain in her back. The MRI showed Miller had an infection and was in danger of becoming paralyzed from the neck down without the surgery. However, it was later learned that Miller was misdiagnosed.

“It was not an infection, it was a type of a non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma – it’s a type of cancer,” the doctor said. “We’re getting an oncologist involved and we have to figure out what the next steps are as far as chemotherapy or radiation or more spine surgery.” Melamed said Miller’s treatment will depend on what type of tumor the TV personality has though he added Miller will likely undergo chemotherapy or radiation.

From jail cell to hospital bed

Abby Lee Miller was released from jail just a couple of weeks prior to her series of health scares. She was first hospitalized for a thyroid condition a week before she started experiencing back pain, which necessitated surgery. While Melamed said the spine surgery went well and Miller is slowly regaining feeling in her lower body, he stressed that “we’re still not out of the woods.”

As such, Miller is now facing a more daunting task.

Melamed is hoping she does not have Stage 4 cancer. He said the cancer is merely a “preliminary diagnosis” and things will be clearer once they get hold of the results of Miller’s pathology and oncology tests.

'Dance Moms' star ran afoul of the law

After making a name for herself in the field of dance, Abby Lee Miller found fame in reality television.

However, with her success on TV came all her troubles. She filed for bankruptcy in 2010 after owing over $400,000 in taxes. In 2014, she was charged with assault by one of the “Dance Moms” dancers. Collins Avenue Entertainment, the production company behind the show, was also sued for encouraging violence and staging disagreements for the sake of ratings.

Miller was indicted for bankruptcy fraud in 2015 after she was discovered to have a secret bank account, which contained $755,000 of her earnings from masterclasses and “Dance Moms” despite claiming to be bankrupt. The reality TV star was facing five years of prison time and a fine of $250,000 for each of the 20 counts she was indicted on before she reached a deal with the IRS.

As a result, Miller was sentenced to go to jail for only one year and one day.

TV star’s bumpy road to freedom

In July 2017, Abby Lee Miller started serving her sentence at the Victorville Federal Correctional Institution in California. She spent around eight months in prison before she was transferred to a halfway house on March 27. But before Miller could finish her sentence, she began experiencing pain in her neck, who, as mentioned earlier, was later diagnosed with cancer.

Despite her legal troubles, Miller still has the support of her co-stars and other people in the entertainment industry. The team behind "Dance Moms" has offered well-wishes and words of encouragement to their star. JoJo Siwa, former "Dance Moms" dancer and YouTube star said she visited Miller in the hospital.

Blogger Perez Hilton also offered encouragement saying non-Hodgkin's lymphoma can be beaten.
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