‘Thanksgiving Grandma’ Wanda Dench Reveals She Has Breast Cancer

‘Thanksgiving Grandma’ Wanda Dench Diagnosed With Breast Cancer

Wanda Dench, the grandmother who made headlines after she accidentally invited Jamal Hinton to Thanksgiving with her family in 2016, is unfortunately having health issues.

The Arizona grandmother who’s won the hearts of many netizens recently shared that she is battling breast cancer.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter on October 16, Jamal posted a written memo from the 67-year-old. “Here is a special message from Wanda,” he wrote in the caption of his tweet, adding a selfie he took with Wanda when they first met.

Here is a special message from Wanda🌺 pic.twitter.com/KDTWktDPfN

— Jamal Hinton (@Jamalhinton12) October 16, 2024

“Hi, my name is Wanda, you might know how we meant in 2016 when I accidentally sent him a text inviting him to Thanksgiving when I thought I sent it to my grandson,” she began. “It went viral and it changed our life for the better.”

In the message, Wanda revealed that despite her current health battle, her and Jamal will honor their tradition. “We still plan on getting together for Thanksgiving next month,” she wrote. “As we have every year.”

She continued, “Earlier this year I came down with bronchitis and had a CT scan to check out my lungs. That’s when a mass in my breast was detected and they suggested I get a mammogram and that verified I had breast cancer. I have been currently going through chemotherapy.”

Wanda however clarified that cancer doesn’t run in her family and all the mammograms she’s had in the past were always negative: “In 2022, I turned 65 years old and thought I would have my last mammogram and not have to think about it again. But I was wrong.”

She added that she has been undergoing treatment with the help of “wonderful,” kind,” and “supportive,”people at The Breast Cancer Center and is surrounded by the love of her family.