Antonia Hylton appeared on the Third Hour of Today on November 30, where she opened up about her cancer diagnosis for the first time.
The NBC News correspondent chatted to hosts Craig Melvin, Al Roker, Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer, about her battle with a rare type of cancer, a neuroendocrine tumor.
Antonia explained to the anchors that she had brushed off her symptoms for a while, which included constant stomach issues.
She said that it was "easy for me to just write it off," at first, and put the issues down to her busy lifestyle on the road.
She said that she would tell herself: "I travel, I'm on planes (and) maybe I don't have the best diet. But I love what I do, so it's worth it and I'm not going to let these symptoms hold me back."
However, it was after watching Craig retelling the heartbreaking story of his brother Lawrence's death due to colon cancer, that prompted her to get herself seen by a doctor.
She said that "something about that really stuck with me," along with watching a video of a woman on TikTok who had been diagnosed with colon cancer aged just 24.
After worsening symptoms prompted her even further to see a doctor, Antonia was sent to get a colonoscopy, which led to her receiving an upsetting call on her 30th birthday from the doctor.
She told the Today anchors that the screening test had found a polyp, which turned out to be a neuroendocrine tumor, a rare type of cancer that releases hormones into the bloodstream.
© Charley GallayUnderstandably, Antonia was "panicking," but luckily, due to it being caught early, it was able to be treated. "I had a series of procedures to remove tissue and screening tests to see if the cancer had spread.
© Jon KopaloffThe last scan showed I'm all clear," she said. The 30-year-old has now learnt to pay more attention to her body and any changing symptoms. "I learned a really important lesson at 30 to listen to myself and to put myself first," she explained.
"I love my job. I worked hard here at NBC, and I'm not going to stop doing that. But I've learned the lesson that I really need to put my health first and not push these things off."
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