Anna Cardwell Tried for a Baby, Suffered Multiple Miscarriages

Over the weekend, her famous family shared the heartbreaking news of Anna Cardwell’s tragic death.

Often known as “Chickadee,” the eldest daughter of Mama June Shannon was only 29 years old.

Her stage 4 cancer diagnosis was sudden and, of course, unexpected.

But in an interview that she gave before that, she had opened up about other health struggles. Among other issues, she had endured four miscarriages as she and her boyfriend tried to have a child.

In 2021, Anna Cardwell did not know that she was in the final years of her life.

At that time, she offered an interview to The US Sun about her struggles to have a child.

She was attempting to have a third child with boyfriend Eldridge Toney. (She quietly married after her cancer diagnosis)

Anna had two children already.

Kaitlyn Clark is now 11. Kylee Cardwell is 7. Neither were with Eldridge, and the two were unable to give the girls a younger sibling.

“We are trying to have a third child, and it’s been difficult. I’ve gone through four miscarriages and a D&C,” Anna shared in 2021. “It’s been a long bumpy road for us trying to have baby number three.” 

Anna said that she shared that her body was not producing enough progesterone, which she explained was “keeping the baby from getting enough nutrition.”

At the time, Anna was determined to have her rainbow baby. This term is popular in certain circles to describe the first child after a miscarriage.

“We know what’s going on now,” Anna affirmed. “And we are taking the right precautions to take care of it and make sure it stays alive and everything like that.”

In January, Anna received her tragic and unexpected diagnosis. At just 28, she had stage four cancer.

The adrenal carcinoma had already spread to her liver, her kidney, and her lung. Anna only discovered this when she complained of stomachaches.

She tried chemotherapy, dietary changes, and more. Anna focused all of her energy on fighting the disease that was ravaging her body.

Adrenal carcinoma is a rare form of cancer. The medical community does not fully understand the causes of this particular neuroendocrine cancer.

Certain genetic conditions can increase the likelihood of the adrenal mutations that cause this.

But environmental factors, like exposure to carcinogens and radiation, can also be a factor. Anna and her family grew up in extreme poverty, making them at high risk for certain types of toxic exposure. We do not know what, if it was any one factor, brought about this tragedy.