‘Shopaholic’ author Sophie Kinsella reveals brain cancer diagnosis

By CNN Newsource

Published April 18, 2024 4:44 AM

By Amarachi Orie, CNN

(CNN) — Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the “Shopaholic” book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.

“I’ve wanted for a long time to share with you a health update and I’ve been waiting for the strength to do so,” she wrote in an Instagram post on Wednesday.

“At the end of 2022 I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a form of aggressive brain cancer. I did not share this before because I wanted to make sure that my children were able to hear and process the news in privacy and adapt to our ‘new normal,’” she continued.

Glioblastomas are a fast-growing type of brain tumor and the most common type of cancerous (malignant) brain tumor in adults, according to charity Cancer Research UK.

Kinsella, who lives in the United Kingdom with her husband and children, said she is under the care of an “excellent team” at a London hospital, and has had “successful surgery and subsequent radiotherapy and chemotherapy, which is still ongoing.”

“At the moment all is stable and I am feeling generally very well, though I get very tired and my memory is even worse than it was before,” she added.

The author, who also goes by the name Madeleine Wickham, has sold more than 45 million copies of her books, which have been translated into more than 40 languages, in more than 60 countries, according to her website.

Her “Shopaholic” protagonist, Becky Bloomwood, a shopping-loving financial journalist who is hopeless with money, made it to the big screen in a 2009 movie adaptation “Confessions of a Shopaholic.” She was portrayed by Australian actress Isla Fisher.

“Sending you so much love and healing energy,” Fisher commented under Kinsella’s Instagram post.

“I am so grateful to my family and close friends who have been an incredible support to me, and to the wonderful doctors and nurses who have treated me,” Kinsella added in her post.

“I am also so grateful to my readers for your constant support. The wonderful response to The Burnout has really buoyed me up, during a difficult time,” she continued.

Kinsella’s latest book, romantic comedy “The Burnout,” was released in October.