Tarek El Moussa, who stars alongside wife Christina on the HGTV show "Flip or Flop," is in remission after a fan of the home restoration show pointed out a lump in El Moussa's neck that turned out to be thyroid cancer.
Fan Ryan Read, a trained nurse, emailed "Flip or Flop" producers in 2013 and urged
El Moussa to see a doctor, according to The Independent.
“This is not a joke. I'm a registered nurse," Read wrote. "I've been watching 'Flip or Flop.' I noticed that the host Tarek has a large nodule on his thyroid, and he needs to have it checked out.”
The check-up led to a biopsy, surgery, and a positive cancer diagnosis. Now, after undergoing thyroid radioactive iodine therapy, El Moussa's cancer is in remission. Tarek, 34, and Christina, 32, even welcomed a son, Brayden James, in August.
"There is always that chance of reoccurrence but every year that goes by the odds of reoccurrence
goes down so it's good," El Moussa told People recently. "I have slowed down quite a bit. Which is actually a good thing because I can actually relax now."
Christina El Moussa told People that she was "blindsided" by her husband's diagnosis. Tarek said to the magazine, though, that he's continuing to rebound.
"I feel good, but I don't have the energy I used to have," he said. "The only thing is most days or like half the time I feel a little jetlagged. I'm really tired."
Before "Flip or Flop" premiered in 2013, Tarek El Moussa made a name for himself in California flipping distressed properties after the
real estate market went bust, according to the HGTV description of the show.
"Flip or Flop" will return to HGTV for a
fourth season on Dec. 3, according to Fox News.
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