AEW’s Rebel Shares Lung Cancer Diagnosis

AEW star Rebel has revealed that she’s been diagnosed with cancer.

After signing with AEW in 2019, Rebel, real name Tanea Brooks, went on to form a popular partnership with Britt Baker that saw the latter crowned Women’s World Champion. However, Rebel has been absent from television for a long time as she battles several health issues.

The star dislocated her kneecap during a match in 2021, and although she returned to the ring, she hasn’t appeared since August 2022.

Back in September 2024, Rebel announced that she’d been hospitalized with pneumonia, but she’s continued to face an uphill battle.

Rebel Reveals Cancer Battle

In a new video on social media, Rebel gave fans an update on her recovery, and unfortunately, it wasn’t good news. Although she’d been treated for pneumonia, that diagnosis proved to be incorrect, and she’s now been diagnosed with cancer of the lungs.

“After a year of not getting better, I decided to go to the Mayo Clinic and see if I could get treated by them and they found that it was not cryptococcal pneumonia this whole time and that it is primary pulmonary lymphoma, which is cancer in the lungs. And if there is a best case scenario then I have it so that’s good.

Tomorrow I start rehab because along this tumultuous journey I picked up a little disorder called functional neurological disorder and it has taken my ability to walk. I now walk with a walker and my ability to speak clearly, I don’t know if you can tell, but it sounds like I bit my tongue.”

The star added that the neurological condition has also left her with a loss of function in ger right hand. However, she’s set to begin therapy to combat the disorder which will essentially become her “full-time job.”

Rebel is also battling an infection which is being treated with IV antibiotics. Once the infection is dealt with, her cancer treatment will finally begin.

“And once that’s finished, hopefully in December, I will go in for a third bronchoscopy to determine what kind of treatment are we having, chemo, radiation, immunology and then we’ll start there and then we’ll kick its ass, OK? So I’m hoping that will start around the first of 2026.”

Rebel began her wrestling career in 2013 with TNA before going on to appear for Ohio Valley Wrestling. The star later returned to TNA, while also making appearances for Stardom and a one-off in NXT before signing with AEW in 2019.

Everyone a TJR Wrestling would like to send their best wishes to Rebel.

H/t to f4wonline