Tatiana Schlossberg Reveals Terminal Cancer Diagnosis
On Saturday, Tatiana Schlossberg, the granddaughter of former President John F. Kennedy, announced she has terminal cancer, coinciding with the 62nd anniversary of her grandfather’s assassination.
The 35-year-old shared that she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia featuring a rare mutation known as inversion 3 shortly after the birth of her daughter in May 2024. Recently, her doctors informed her she may have only about a year left to live.
“My first reaction was concern that my kids, whose faces are forever in my mind, won’t remember me,” she expressed in an essay. “My son might recall some moments, but they’ll likely blend with images and tales he hears over the years.”
She continued, “I wasn’t able to care for my daughter—diaper changes, baths, even feeding her were too risky post-transplant. I spent nearly half of her first year away. What will she think of me? Will she even remember me as her mom when I’m gone?”
Schlossberg found the diagnosis particularly shocking because she felt entirely healthy. “I couldn’t grasp that they were talking about me,” she recalled. “Just the day before my diagnosis, I swam a mile while nine months pregnant. I felt great—actually, I considered myself one of the healthiest people around.”
The cancer typically affects older adults, and doctors often inquired if she had spent time at Ground Zero in New York City, which she hadn’t.
As the daughter of Caroline Kennedy, JFK’s oldest surviving daughter, Schlossberg detailed her painful journey through treatment. She initially underwent chemotherapy aimed at reducing blast cells in her bone marrow, followed by a transplant, aided by her sister.
After entering remission, she faced the reality that she would need to redo all her childhood vaccinations due to her compromised immune system.
However, she later experienced a relapse, as the mutation is known to recur. Earlier in the year, she participated in a clinical trial for CAR-T cell therapy, which has shown promise for certain blood cancers, and went through another round of chemotherapy.
“During those clinical trials, doctors suggested I might live for about a year,” she noted.
In her essay, she addressed her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination for Secretary of Health and Human Services, remarking, “It felt beyond awkward.” She mentioned how relying on the healthcare system began to feel uncertain.
Schlossberg also expressed gratitude for her family who supported her during treatment and while caring for her child. “He’s perfect, and it’s heartbreaking that I won’t be around to share more of life with this amazing person I’ve been lucky to find,” she lamented about her husband, George Moran.
Her brother, Jack Schlossberg, who is running for a position in the New York State Assembly, shared a message on Instagram about making the most of life.
Maria Shriver, a relative, shared Schlossberg’s essay on social media, urging people to read her extraordinary reflections.
Tatiana expressed, “All my life, I’ve strived to be a good daughter and sister. Now I’ve introduced yet another tragedy into our family life. There’s nothing I can do to reverse it.”
Moreover, her family’s tragic history includes the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and John F. Kennedy and the early deaths of her other relatives. Her grandmother, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, also succumbed to cancer in 1994.
Concluding her essay, she shared insights on living for her children. “But staying present is tougher than I imagined, so I let memories flow in and out,” she admitted. “Many are from my childhood; it’s as if I’m watching myself grow up alongside my own kids.”
She reflected, “I sometimes convince myself I’ll remember everything until the end. But, in truth, I know I won’t. Yet, I keep pretending, as I’m uncertain about what lies beyond death.”
