Mama June’s Daughter Anna ‘Chickadee’ Cardwell Dead Following Cancer Battle
Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell died at the age of 29 on Saturday, December 9, following her cancer battle. Her mother, June "Mama June" Shannon, confirmed the news via Instagram on Sunday, December 10.
"With the breaking heart, we are announcing that [Anna] is no longer with us," she wrote. "She passed away in my home last night peacefully at 11:12 PM. She gave one hell of a fight for 10 months. She passed away with her family around her. We will be updating y'all with more information as we get it today. We love y'all and continued prayers and thoughts for our family [during] this difficult time."
In the days leading up to her death, Anna's family members took to Facebook to ask their followers to pray for their daughter and sister.
"We are asking as a family that y'all continue to give us prayers during this time, and as this process goes along, we will let y'all know updates as soon as we can," Mama June wrote on December 8.
"Everyone just pray for us right now," Anna's sister, Lauryn “Pumpkin" Efird, posted to Facebook on the same day.
Anna, who was the eldest child of June, revealed in March 2023 that she was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma in January.
In November, Lauryn, 23, shared via Facebook that she and her family were taking Anna on one final family vacation, as her condition was rapidly deteriorating in the wake of her terminal diagnosis.
“Sadly, it’s gotten worse over the last couple of months, and her wish is to go to Gatlinburg with all of us,” Lauryn explained in the comments section of her November 28 post about the trip. “So we are making that happen & making the best out of this.”
Anna is survived by her daughters Kaitlyn and Kylee, whom she shared with her estranged husband, Michael Cardwell. The former TV personality was in a relationship with Eldridge Toney at the time of her passing.
In addition to Anna, June, 43, is also the mother to Jessica Shannon and Lauryn with ex Michael Anthony Ford and Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson with ex Mike “Sugar Bear” Thompson.
She reportedly underwent a series of tests after experiencing ?stomach aches, which is when she learned that cancer was discovered in her liver, kidney and lung.
Adrenal carcinoma “is a rare disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the outer layer of the adrenal gland,” according to the National Cancer Institute.
One day after her diagnosis was revealed on March 30, Anna showed that she was losing chunks of her hair following her first round of chemotherapy. Despite the physical toll, a family insider told TMZ at the time that she had a “positive outlook” about the situation.
While Anna kept relatively quiet about her health battle, several of her family members issued statements to confirm the news.
“[And] this is what I mean when I say you never truly know what somebody is going through at home, no matter how famous they are,” Alana, 18, wrote via her Instagram Stories alongside a screenshot of the TMZ that reported the news earlier that day. “Yes, I’m very famous, but normal sh–t happens to me and my family [and] y’all need to realize that asap.”
June also spoke out following Anna’s diagnosis. “This has been a very emotional road for the family but we are sticking together me n justin n Josh are doing everything we can do and to b there for Anna Marie Cardwell and Eldridge Toney and the girls through this journey just pray for all of us especially her girls we appreciate y’all so much [sic],” the Here Comes Honey Boo Boo alum wrote via Facebook at the time.
