Teddi Mellencamp showcased her newly shaved head after announcing she would be undergoing emergency surgery for brain tumors.
The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 43, documented parts of the scary ordeal, sharing a number of videos to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, including the moment her long blonde tresses were shaved to a buzzcut.
As she prepared for surgery, Teddi kept up her spirits, telling two female pals in a clip, ‘I didn’t have this look on my bucket list.’
One of her friends told her, ‘Love you babe. You got this,’ while another said, ‘Might be your best look yet.’
The star was joined by a number of pals in the hospital, including Kyle Richards, 56 — at whose house she’s been staying amid her divorce — and Morgan Wade, 30. Teddi also had the support of her estranged husband Edwin Arroyave, 47.
Mellencamp’s health surgery comes two years after she battled stage II melanoma cancer.
Teddi Mellencamp, 43, showcased her newly shaved head after announcing she would be undergoing emergency surgery for brain tumors
The star was joined by a number of pals, including Kyle Richards , 56, and Morgan Wade, 30, who rushed to be by her side in the hospital
Mellencamp’s health surgery comes two years after she battled stage II melanoma cancer: seen in 2024
In another video, Teddi teased her brother Hud Mellencamp, 30, joking she was rocking a shaved head better than him.
‘I hate to break it to my bother, but once I’m allowed to wash my hair, and it’s not all spiky, I think I’ve taken you for a run for your money Hud. I’ll see you tomorrow, and we’ll see who did it better. Who wore it best.’
Read More Inside Teddi Mellencamp’s years-long skin cancer battle amid devastating brain tumor diagnosis 
She also shared a clip with her former co-star Kyle, and country singer Morgan, who have been the subject of lesbian romance rumors.
The clip started out with Teddi in a hospital bed. ‘Yup, here we go!’ she said, as she panned the camera to the other people in the room. Richards and Wade both waved at the camera, with Kyle flashing a small smile.
‘We’re all getting ready. How many minutes? What’s the countdown?’ she asked, before being told she only had ten minutes before the surgery.
Richards sported a casual ensemble for the hospital visit, wearing a black zip-up jacket, jeans and a trucker hat. A surgical mask was looped around her wrist.
Meanwhile Wade sported a black beanie, a graphic t-shirt and black jeans.
Last December it was revealed that Teddi has been living with longtime pal Kyle amid her divorce. Kyle herself is mid-separation from Mauricio Umansky after 27 years of marriage.
Earlier on Wednesday Teddi revealed ‘multiple tumors’ have been found on her brain and that she would be undergoing emergency surgery today.
The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star documented parts of the scary ordeal, sharing a number of videos to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, including the moment her long blonde tresses were shaved to a buzzcut
As she prepared for surgery, Teddi kept up her spirits, telling two female pals in one clip, ‘I didn’t have this look on my bucket list.’ One of her pals replied, ‘Might be your best look yet’
In another video, Teddi teased her brother Hud Mellencamp, 30, joking she was rocking a shaved head better than him
She also shared a clip with her former co-star Kyle, and country singer Morgan, who have been the subject of lesbian romance rumors
The clip started out with Teddi in a hospital bed. ‘Yup, here we go!’ she said, as she panned the camera to the other people in the room. Richards and Wade both waved at the camera, with Kyle flashing a small smile
Teddi also had the support of her estranged husband Edwin Arroyave, 47, who was present among her loved ones
Teddi and Kyle have been friends for many years. Last year Teddi moved into Kyle’s home as both former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills costars navigate their respective separations; seen in 2023
In a statement posted to her Instagram, Mellencamp revealed the tumors were discovered following ‘several weeks’ of ‘severe and debilitating headaches.’
She shared that doctors would be removing two tumors today, with the remaining ‘smaller tumors’ to be ‘dealt with via radiation at a later date.’
The devastating news comes amid her battle with skin cancer, which began in 2022.
While it’s unclear what type of tumor has been discovered, skin cancer can spread to the brain and cause brain tumors, known as brain metastasis.
‘For the last several weeks I’ve been dealing with severe and debilitating headaches. Yesterday the pain was unbearable and required hospitalization,’ Mellencamp, who is the daughter of American singer John Mellencamp, said in her statement.
‘After a CT scan and MRI, doctors found multiple tumors on my brain, which they believed have been growing for at least 6 months.
‘Two of the tumors will be surgically removed today – the remaining smaller tumors will be dealt with via radiation at a later date.
‘I am blessed to be surrounded by my children, family, friends, doctors, nurses, and surgeons who are doing everything possible to get me back into better health.
Before she shaved her head, she shared a pH๏τo from the hospital bed with the caption, ‘counting down the minutes until my babies get here’
Mellencamp shared a statement revealing ‘multiple’ tumors were found on her brain following ‘severe and debilitating headaches’
‘Thank you everybody who has reached out, and to everyone who has supported me along this journey.’
Mellencamp appeared to be preparing to undergo surgery in content posted to her Instagram Stories, which began with a pH๏τo of herself wearing a hospital robe and laying in bed with various devices placed upon her forehead.
‘Counting down the minutes until my babies get here,’ she wrote in the pH๏τo. ‘As my dad said this am, god only gives hard stuff to those of us who can handle it.
‘It’s a hard day but I have faith and amazing surgeons and know everything will be ok.’
In a subsequent video, Teddi’s hair was shaved off by a friend.
As her pal clipped off her long hair, Teddi tried to remain positive amid the scary circumstances.
Teddi’s surgery comes two years after she was diagnosed with stage two melanoma, the most dangerous type of skin cancer and kills nearly 10,000 people per year.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in men and the sixth most common in women.
The Certified Wellness Coach estimated that since her initial diagnosis, she has had about 20 surgeries to combat the cancer.
Teddi’s surgery comes two years after she was diagnosed with stage two melanoma, the most dangerous type of skin cancer and kills nearly 10,000 people per year
This is the surgery that left her with the large, zig-zag scar across her back and shoulder
Her biggest surgery was a ‘wide excision for melanoma and soft tissue defect reconstruction with adjacent tissue rearrangement,’ according to E! News, which she underwent back in December 2023.
This is the surgery that left her with the large, zig-zag scar across her back and shoulder.
In December, Mellencamp was happy to report that she would not be undergoing another biopsy following two years of skin checks.
‘I just got done having a little cry, but it’s a good one,’ she said.
‘It’s the first time, and over two years, I’ve gone in for my three-month check and not had to have a biopsy because I have another cancer spot.’
‘Oh my gosh, such a good feeling,’ she added.
2024 was a particularly difficult year for Teddi, with the star splitting from husband Edwin following more than 10 years of marriage.
She recently broke her silence about the reason her marriage ended.
Opening up on The Skinny Confidential podcast, the star implied that it was infidelity that put their relationship on a rough track – long before she allegedly strayed with her married horse trainer, Simon Schroeder.
‘Me and Edwin had some of the most amazing years and the most amazing times, and when we met it was H๏τ and it was all the things, and then there would be somebody else,’ she confessed.
‘And I’d be like, “It’s okay, I’m gonna work through it, I’m gonna make him love me more!” Then you have kids and things happen,’ she continued.
2024 was a particularly difficult year for Teddi, with the star splitting from husband Edwin after 13 years of marriage; the two seen in 2019
‘Probably at the point in time when Edwin was ready to start working on it and really change, I probably stopped.’
She added, ‘But I never told him I was checked out. I think that’s the problem.’
Teddi admitted that Edwin had started working on himself to save their marriage, but at that point the damage had been done.
‘I think I had resentment or animosity or fear of ever being open again, so then I just closed off,’ she said.
Teddi announced her split from husband Edwin after 13 years of marriage in November.
The former couple share three children: Slate, 12, son Cruz, 10, and daughter Dove, four.
She had previously hinted that they had gone through troubles in their marriage during a 2023 episode of her podcast, Two Ts in a Pod.
‘For years I had so much resentment towards Edwin, and it was to the point where I couldn’t even look at him,’ she said.
‘And the fact that we’ve been able to work through it has been huge. But like once you’ve been burned, it’s really hard to come back.’
After announcing the split, Teddi took to Instagram to share a defiant message amid the scandal surrounding the affair, claiming she had found peace with her past wrongdoings.
The former couple share three children: Slate, 12, son Cruz, 10, and daughter Dove, four
‘The only person who can change your life is you,’ she wrote alongside a video of herself working out.
‘We have two options: pretend to be a victim or stand up and fight for yourself. We all deserve peace and happiness,’ she continued.
‘I have cried and mourned. I have taken accountability and apologized for things I have done wrong. Now, I have given myself permission to grow and thrive.’
DailyMail.com previously revealed that Mellencamp and her married horse trainer were having a months-long love affair behind their spouses’ backs. The scandalous affair was reportedly the catalyst for her divorce.
WHAT IS MELANOMA AND HOW CAN YOU PREVENT IT?
Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer. It happens after the DNA in skin cells is damaged (typically due to harmful UV rays) and then not repaired so it triggers mutations that can form malignant tumors.
The estimated number of diagnosis for skin cancer in Australia in 2018 is 14,320 which grew from the previous year were there were 13,941 cases and 1,839 deaths.
Approximately two in three Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer by the time they are 70.
Causes
Sun exposure: UV and UVB rays from the sun and tanning beds are harmful to the skinMoles: The more moles you have, the greater the risk for getting melanoma Skin type: Fairer skin has a higher risk for getting melanomaHair color: Red heads are more at risk than othersPersonal history: If you’ve had melanoma once, then you are more likely to get it againFamily history: If previous relatives have been diagnosed, then that increases your risk
Treatment
Removal of the melanoma:
This can be done by removing the entire section of the tumor or by the surgeon removing the skin layer by layer. When a surgeon removes it layer by layer, this helps them figure out exactly where the cancer stops so they don’t have to remove more skin than is necessary.
Skin grafting:
The patient can decide to use a skin graft if the surgery has left behind discoloration or an indent.
Immunotherapy, radiation treatment or chemotherapy:
This is needed if the cancer reaches stage III or IV. That means that the cancerous cells have spread to the lymph nodes or other organs in the body.
Prevention
Use sunscreen and do not burnAvoid tanning outside and in beds Apply sunscreen 30 minutes before going outsideKeep newborns out of the sunExamine your skin every monthSee your physician every year for a skin exam
Source: Skin Cancer Foundation and Cancer Council Australia
