‘Shopaholic’ Author, Sophie Kinsella, Reveals Brain Tumor Diagnosis

Sophie Kinsella reveals also that she hid her brain tumor diagnosis from the public to allow her children to adapt to the “new normal.”

When the news of having cancer hit, Sophie Kinsella did what any famous mom would: keep it under wraps and let her kids know first. Although she already had surgery and is currently going through radiotherapy and chemotherapy to address the Glioblastoma—a highly aggressive brain tumor—it was a battle that had been happening since 2022.

“I wanted them to hear and process the news in privacy,” reveals the Shopaholic author in an Instagram post. “I wanted to make sure they were adapting to the new normal.”

A battle that she couldn’t easily reveal

As an author, Sophie Kinsella always makes sure her beloved readers are updated. After the success of Confessions of a Shopaholic and its adaptation in the movie, her name became a household term for many comedy-romance bookworms out there. Most recently, she introduced her new book: The Burnout, in which she drew inspiration from her own experiences with the aforementioned phenomenon.

“Having experienced burnout myself in the past and seeing it around me everywhere, I was keen to write about it. It’s a serious subject, and I hope I’ve done it justice. But—you know me—I have to see the funny and ridiculous side of any situation,” Sophie adds in the recently released novel’s blurb.

So it was quite a shock to Sophie Kinsella’s fans and fellow writers that the Glioblastoma had been bothering her since 2022 when the book came out in October 2023. Besides granting her kids privacy, she had been waiting to “gain the strength” to update her fans about her battle against the disease. Once she opened up about it, support poured in as she thanked her fans for their constant support.

“The wonderful response to The Burnout has really buoyed me up, during a difficult time,” she adds. “I am also 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.” 

The meaning of support is beyond words

Cancer, once the news of the diagnosis sets in, can change a worldview. It’s a kind of “scary” news that Sophie says can make one feel “lonely,” especially when it’s highly aggressive. Amidst the battle she has against the diagnosis, Sophie assures that the support “means more than words can say.”

“To everyone who is suffering from cancer in any form I send love and best wishes, as well as to those who support them,” she writes. “It’s a tough diagnosis. But I’ll be in touch soon! In the meanwhile, greetings from sunny London!”

Sophie Kinsella, also known as Madeleine Wickham, is a boy-mom of three: Freddy, Oscar, and Hugo.

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