‘Top Chef’ Alum Shirley Chung Reveals Stage 4 Tongue Cancer Diagnosis

Top Chef alum Shirley Chung is sharing some devastating health news with a heartbreaking video.

The 47-year-old renowned chef took to Instagram and shared she’s been diagnosed with stage 4 tongue cancer. Her post included a carousel post of her shaving her head. In the first video, Chung shared that, for her mental health, it was better to shave her head rather than pulling out wads of hair like she had earlier in the morning. 

“Surprisingly, shaving it off for me mentally felt better than pulling it off in the morning,” she shared.

Chung shared in her lengthy caption that her long list of health problems date back to December.

“Since last year December, I had a series of dental issues, I bit my tongue severely; I fractured my tooth and had to extract it and get an implant… we thought it was because I am a heavy teeth grinder. And I was too busy to see a EMT specialist,” Chung wrote. “The end of May, ulcers erupted in my mouth and my oral surgeon discovered a hidden tumor under my tongue. A few days later, I was diagnosed, stage 4 tongue cancer, as cancer cells also spread into my lymph nodes.”

Chung added that she was “very calm” when doctors delivered the devastating news, largely because as a chef she’s “always thrive[d] under pressure.”

But then came a June 2 appointment with her lead oncologist, whom Chung said offered her two treatment plans — surgery and 100 percent removal of her tongue or radiation and chemo that would potentially help save her tongue. It’s a long shot, she said, as it’s considered “a unicorn case” that was successfully performed at the University of Chicago.

Chung said she was told it was in Chicago where a patient, who happened to also be a chef, underwent the procedure and survived. Chung said she’s choosing option two and will fight to keep her tongue intact.

“I chose to keep my tongue,” she wrote. “I am a fighter, I am a chef, I can be that unicorn too.”

Chung says she’s completed six weeks of chemo with “many more to go.” She says she goes to the hospital four times a week for injections. The good news, she says, is that her tumor is shrinking and her speech is improving, “and I can eat most normal food now.”

Chung competed on season 14 of Top Chef: Charleston. She was the runner-up to Brooke Williamson. She also appeared on season 11 of Top Chef: New Orleans, finishing tied for third. Chung has worked under renowned chefs José Andrés and Thomas Keller, among others. She opened her first restaurant in Culver City, California in 2018. Chung has also appeared on Food Network’s Tournament of Champions. 

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