Vicki Gunvalson Gives Jeana Keough Tongue Cancer Update

The Real Housewives of Orange County star Vicki Gunvalson has shared an update regarding her close friend Jeana Keough’s struggle with tongue cancer.

During the Sunday, August 9 episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Vicki, 64, stated, “She’s going through it. She’s in chemo, radiation, and we just pray for her.”

Previously, Vicki had expressed her support for fellow RHOC original cast member Jeana, 70, on Instagram.

On July 20, she shared, “By now most of you have heard my incredible friend @jeanakeough is battling cancer,” while linking to a GoFundMe page created to help with Jeana’s treatment expenses. “Her daughter Kara explained her journey on this GoFundMe post. Please donate if you can, and lift her up in healing ❤️‍🩹 prayers. Jeana, you have been there for so many people through your life, now it’s our turn to be there for you! We love you girl 💪🙏❤️.”

Jeana’s daughter, Kara Keough, first shared the news of her mother’s cancer diagnosis in July.

“A few months ago, while visiting Shane and me in Florida, my mom mentioned a painful spot on her tongue,” Kara wrote on the GoFundMe page. “She assumed a tooth had been rubbing against it and had even gone to the dentist multiple times to have the tooth filed down. I asked her how long the sore had been there. She paused, thought about it, and realized it had been nearly a year.”

Kara revealed that Jeana was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue.

“After surgery to remove the cancer, we were hopeful that the hardest part was behind her. But when doctors recommended a second surgery to remove lymph nodes, they discovered the cancer had spread,” Kara explained. “What we thought would be a one-time surgery became a full cancer battle.”

On Thursday, August 6, Kara provided an update on her mom’s treatment, confirming that Jeana had completed her final radiation treatment the day before. “We were informed that these next two weeks will be the roughest on her physically — as the chemo and radiation are compounding and her body will be at its weakest point,” she noted.

Kara described the challenges her mother faces, saying, “The radiation burns have now made it to the outer skin on her neck and even putting medicated cream on the area with the gentlest of touches causes her wincing pain.” She added, “We’re rocking and rolling with the feeding tube and I can feed her in the dark while she sleeps at this point and she’s stopped losing weight. This is a win and we’re taking it as such.”

Despite attempts to find an effective nausea treatment, Kara shared that it remains a struggle, stating, “We’re still trying to find a nausea treatment that might prevent the painful vomiting but haven’t found the perfect solution yet.” Kara also mentioned the difficulty of managing the pain without narcotics, describing it as a “really tough challenge to accept.”