15 Celebrities With Chronic Illnesses: Cara Delevingne, Wendy Williams and More

Cara Delevingne has been suffering from chronic skin disease psoriasis for years, but she does not let her illness get in the way of raising awareness about it. In her interview with Glamour Germany, the supermodel spoke about taking advantage of her diagnosis at the Met Gala.

"I've always talked about my psoriasis, so it wasn't new. But I've never been more naked in public and showing my psoriasis there was just overwhelming. I didn't realize at first what that would mean," she revealed.

In 2015, Charlie Sheen spoke about his HIV diagnosis for the first time — four years after he contracted the virus. In his sit-down with Matt Lauer on Today, the Wall Street actor revealed he paid millions to his sexual partners to keep his health battle a secret, as he always told them about it before having sexual relations.

This year, a source told Radar that his HIV medication left Sheen with "borderline dementia" that affected his mental and emotional states. He shared a similar statement to the Daily Mail in 2017, opening up about the side effects of his drugs.

"But I struggled with a constant migraine and at times, borderline dementia," he disclosed. "I've started to feel back to myself again and back in touch with all aspects of my life."

Married… with Children actress Christina Applegate revealed her multiple sclerosis diagnosis in a post on X, formerly Twitter, in August 2021.

"It's been a strange journey. But I have been so supported by people that I know who also have this condition," she wrote. "It's been a tough road. But as we all know, the road keeps going. Unless some a------ blocks it.

There is no cure for the chronic autoimmune disease, but there are available treatments to manage its symptoms.

Applegate was not able to detect her MS for years since she did not know that the numbness and tingling sensation in her limbs were the early signs of the illness, per The New York Times.

Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley has been enduring endometriosis since she was 15. The Office on Women's Health explained that chronic illness occurs when a tissue similar to the uterus lining grows outside the body part.

Ridley took to Instagram to reveal her diagnosis.

"My point is, to any of you who are suffering with anything, go to a doctor; pay for a specialist; get your hormones tested, get allergy testing," she urged her fans amid her own struggles. "Keep on top of how your body is feeling and don't worry about sounding like a hypochondriac. From your head to the tips of your toes we only have one body, let us all make sure ours our working in tip top condition, and take help if it's needed."

Gigi Hadid learned that she had the autoimmune disease Hashimoto's disease while also dealing with body shamers online. She first spoke about her diagnosis in 2016 at the panel discussion for Reebok's Perfect Never campaign a year after her critics noticed that something had changed in her physique at New York Fashion Week.

"My metabolism actually changed like crazy this year," she said. "I have Hashimoto's disease. It's a thyroid disease, and it's now been two years since taking the medication for it."

In a 2019 episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Kim Kardashian documented her hospital visit to undergo a lupus test. While she tested negative for the autoimmune disorder, her doctor discovered that she had psoriatic arthritis.

The incurable condition causes joint pain, swelling and stiffness.

"Autoimmune issues are really scary," the KKW Beauty mogul told Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb. "When you get a diagnosis, and I didn't realize I was one of those people, but before I knew what it was, when it was really up in the air, you get in your head and you think of every worst possibility of what's gonna happen and how you're gonna live your life."

Lady Gaga ended up facing tour cancelations due to her fibromyalgia diagnosis, a chronic disease that causes pain and tenderness throughout the sufferer's body.

In her interview with Vogue, the "Bad Romance" hitmaker — born Stefani Germanotta — slammed those people who do not treat her condition as a real disease.

"People need to be more compassionate," she continued. "Chronic pain is no joke. And it's every day waking up not knowing how you're going to feel."

Kate Moss' daughter, Lila Moss, revealed her type 1 diabetes diagnosis in an episode of Diary of a Model on Vogue's YouTube channel. She showed the device that controls her insulin pump and the glucose monitor she always uses to monitor her blood sugar.

She also opened up about her struggles in her interview with The Kit and shared how not everyone is aware of her condition.

At the age of 29, Michael J. Fox started battling Parkinson's disease, which pushed him to create his foundation in 2000. In May, he spoke candidly about his neurological disorder and the injuries he sustained due to balance issues.

"I have aides around me quite a bit of the time in case I fall, and that lack of privacy is hard to deal with," he told Variety. "I lost family members, I lost my dog, I lost freedom, I lost health. I hesitate to use the term' depression,' because I'm not qualified to diagnose myself, but all the signs were there."

Nick Jonas has been inspiring everyone by raising awareness for type 1 diabetes, which he was diagnosed with when he was 13. He revealed in a TikTok video to mark World Diabetes Day in 2022 that he experienced four warning signs of the illness: weight loss, thirst, frequent urination and irritability.

"I was just so concerned that it was going to limit my ability to do all the things I wanted to do. I was very scared — it's a big life change," he said. "I found out very quickly it's a very manageable disease, as long as you're really diligent."

Lisa Marie Presley's daughter Riley Keough has Lyme disease, which caused her to choose surrogacy. She told Vanity Fair in August that she has been undergoing treatment to alleviate the symptoms.

"I can carry children, but it felt like the best choice for what I had going on physically with the autoimmune stuff," she continued.

Sam Faiers suffered from "agonizing cramps" days after joining Celebrity Big Brother in 2014, and she found out that her bowel syndrome was the culprit.

Crohn's disease is a bowel condition that causes chronic inflammation in a person's gastrointestinal tract, which leads from the stomach to the a---.

"I was in the shower and noticed that the weight was just falling off me," she told Philip Schofield and Holly Willoughby of This Morning. "It also affected my skin. It sounds really gross but I had huge boils which burst in front of Louisa. I couldn't believe it was happening on Big Brother!"

Selena Gomez went through it when she was diagnosed with lupus. The "Lose You To Love Me" singer initially stayed at a rehab facility in Arizona for two weeks while undergoing chemotherapy. Due to the complications of the autoimmune disease, she underwent a kidney transplant in 2017 and received an organ from her friend Francia Raisa.

On a TikTok Live in February, she responded to her body shamers and explained how her body changed because of her medications.

"I would much rather be healthy and take care of myself," she said. "My medications are important, and I believe that they're what helps me."

Legally Blonde actress Selma Blair revealed her multiple sclerosis diagnosis on Instagram in 2018. She told CBS Mornings that she started feeling sick in her 20s before a doctor told her she had optic neuritis — one of the common symptoms of MS.

She also experienced headaches and fevers, but Blair only received an official diagnosis when she was in her 40s.

"I was surprised, but then I was like 'Oh of course,' and when the doctor said the first night, 'You've had this at least 25, 30 years, at least,' I was happy. I needed it," she continued. "So to find that out and say, 'Oh, there's a story I can put together' — it was life-changing."

Wendy Williams had been diagnosed with two chronic illnesses: Graves' disease and lymphoedema.

The talk show host confirmed her Graves' disease diagnosis before taking a break from her show several times. A representative told ABC News in 2018 that she needed a break due to her thyroid levels.

"Yesterday, Wendy's doctor prescribed a necessary three weeks of rest to get her levels and medication in sync. The show will be in repeats during this unplanned hiatus," the representative said at the time. "A live show was produced today so that Wendy could speak directly to her fans and explain her condition."

The following year, she told her The Wendy Williams Show viewers that she also learned about her lymphoedema, which caused swelling in different parts of her body.