Actress Amy Schumer, responding to critics who have commented about her appearance, revealed that she has been diagnosed with Cushing syndrome.
Schumer, 41, disclosed her diagnosis on Friday during the “News Not Noise” newsletter, People reported. She responded days after fans began questioning why she had a “puffier” face during her promotional tour for Season 2 of “Life & Beth.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, Cushing syndrome occurs when a person’s body has too much of the hormone cortisol for a long amount of time.
Possible symptoms include weight gain, high blood pressure, and bone loss, according to USA Today. Treatment can involve medication, radiation therapy, or surgery, the newspaper reported.
“I was also in MRI machines four hours at a time, having my veins shut down from the amount of blood drawn and thinking I may not be around to see my son grow up,” Schumer told journalist Jessica Yellin in the newsletter. “So finding out I have the kind of Cushing that will just work itself out and I’m healthy was the greatest news imaginable.”
Specifically, Schumer has exogenous Cushing syndrome, which is caused when a person takes a large amount of synthetic steroids over time, KTTV reported. Schumer said that she also has endometriosis, which can be treated with those steroids, according to the television station.
Schumer said that she learned about her condition while promoting her show, adding that she feels “reborn” after receiving her diagnosis, People reported.
“While I was doing press on camera for my Hulu show, I was also in MRI machines four hours at a time, having my veins shut down from the amount of blood drawn and thinking I may not be around to see my son grow up,” she said. “So finding out I have the kind of Cushing that will just work itself out and I’m healthy was the greatest news imaginable.”
Schumer ended her interview by asking her audience to treat others with more kindness.
“This is a good example of the fact that we never know what is going on with someone,” she said, according to KTTV. “Everyone is struggling with something. Maybe we can all be a little kinder to each other and ourselves.”