After posting a photo of the physical toll thyroid and testicular cancer took on his body, Tarek El Moussa shared another picture on Instagram on Friday, March 17, to show how far he’s come in the last three years.
“Well… I posted the #awful photo yesterday.. so…. I think my updated #picture represents the hard work I put in,” the Flip or Flop star, 35, captioned a photo of himself during a February 28 appearance on Extra. “I think this picture represents winning the war against my illnesses, what do you think?”
As previously reported, El Moussa shared his “before” picture on Thursday, March 16. “I thought I would share this with everyone… to truly understand how absolutely sick I was,” he captioned a shot of himself wearing a loose-fitting blue T-shirt. “Look at this photo and look at my eyes, I was a skeleton. This took a major toll on my physical and mental health. I know many of my fans have had similar struggles and can relate. The last 3 years were the hardest of my life, I look back and still wonder how I survived… I never quit although I wanted to thousands of times all day every day.”
The HGTV star explained to fans that at his lowest point, he lost 60 pounds and suffered a debilitating back injury as a result of his battles with cancer. “This is from hurting my back after battling 2 cancers.. I had a 60 pound weight swing from my illnesses,” he continued. “I’m proud to say I didn’t quit and I’m in the best shape of my life!! For everyone struggling right now from any situation.. remember… keep your head up and don’t quit! There is light at the end of the tunnel, stay strong!”
El Moussa exclusively revealed to Us Weekly last month that he was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2013 just one month after battling thyroid cancer. “It was very difficult on me,” he told Us. “My hormones were way off. It affected me. It’s been three years of hell. I was devastated when I found out. … It took a big toll on me. It kicked my butt.”
The real estate agent later blamed his high-profile divorce from his wife of seven years, Christina El Moussa, on his illnesses. “I think as time went on, you get busier and busier,” he said on The Doctors on March 6. “Businesses, TV, all these things happened at once, and then the cancer, then the cancer, then the back surgery. It just kind of started pushing us apart from each other.”
