Former WWE star reveals skin cancer diagnosis

A former WWE star has revealed a skin cancer diagnosis recently. The star underwent surgery to remove a cancerous mole that was discovered after a biopsy.

In a detailed post on X (FKA Twitter), former WWE star Maria Kanellis revealed that she underwent surgery to remove a cancerous mole from her leg. She mentioned that the cancer was caught early, but it was still serious and needed surgical removal.

"PSA: get your moles checked!!! I had type 0 skin cancer removed today after a previous biopsy came back cancerous. Feeling very blessed; they caught it so early, but definitely exhausted. I will have a beautiful 3-inch scar on my leg. It’s been an interesting few years. They marked it with an eye before surgery to apparently keep away bad spirits," she wrote.

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Maria has been open about her health struggles in the past, and this is not the first cancer scare she has had recently.

Last year, she revealed that she needed to have a retroperitoneoscopic adrenalectomy to remove a mass that doctors found on her adrenal gland in July 2024. She underwent the procedure in October and later shared the test results with her followers, announcing that the tumor was not cancerous and she was cancer-free.

Maria had two stints in WWE

Maria's path into WWE came via the Divas Search competition in 2004. Even though she didn't win, she was offered a contract by the promotion. She began her main roster stint as a backstage announcer who would often be seen confused.

She soon transitioned to a more prominent role on-screen and began appearing in matches. Maria would even team up with John Cena to take on Edge and Lita on an episode of RAW. She received a few title opportunities as well during this time. Her first stint with the global juggernaut ended in 2010.

After a four-year tenure with Ring of Honor and stints in New Japan Pro-Wrestling and TNA, Maria returned to World Wrestling Entertainment in 2017 to manage her husband, Mike Kanellis. She had a storyline with her husband in which she revealed that she was pregnant but claimed that Mike wasn't the father of the child. The storyline went nowhere and was eventually dropped.

Both Maria and Mike were released from their contracts by WWE in 2020, amid budget cuts.

About the author

Sherjeel Malik is a writer at Sportskeeda and covers pro wrestling. He was hooked on the product from the moment he saw The Hardy Boyz jumping off ladders during the Attitude Era. While he comes from an engineering background, Sherjeel’s love for pro wrestling and content writing led him to pursue a career in sports journalism. Before assuming his current role at Sportskeeda, Sherjeel worked at other reputable organizations for five years.

While writing articles, he ensures that he only relies on credible sources for information and covers relevant subjects that do not project an agenda against a particular person or association. WWE legend Paul Heyman once shared Sherjeel’s work on his social media handle.

Sherjeel’s earliest memory of pro wrestling is watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker square off for the WWE Title in the main event of a pay-per-view in 1998. His favorite wrestlers are Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy. While he admires Orton for his character work as a heel, he looks up to Jeff because of his unique wrestling style and risk-taking ability.

If he could go back to the Attitude Era, Sherjeel would like to manage Ken Shamrock and be his mouthpiece. He feels Shamrock’s promo skills prevented him from becoming a main event-level act in WWE. Hence, he would like to help the UFC Hall of Famer get over with fans.

When not writing about pro wrestling, he likes to read classics and fiction books.

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Edited by Sherjeel Malik