Dance instructor Abby Lee Miller helped create names for famous young stars like Maddie and Kenzie Ziegler and JoJo Siwa. She is the creator and founder of the Abby Lee Dance Company and starred on the hit show, Dance Moms, for seven seasons before a brief hiatus. Her teaching methods are considered to be quite controversial, as she was known to yell at very young girls and pit them against one another in dance competitions.
Nevertheless, there’s no denying that she knows how to create a winning number. Currently, she is starring in the eighth season the show. However, there was a time when she feared she may never have the opportunity to get back in the dance studio, according to Showbiz Cheat Sheet .
In 2017, Miller was sent to jail after being charged with bankruptcy fraud. At the time, it looked like Dance Moms was over for good. After all, how can the show go on without its leading lady? A little over a year later, Miller was released from prison, but was then faced with a new obstacle to overcome.
She was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma, a rare type of cancer, in March of 2018. She spent months going through grueling cancer treatments and surgeries, and for a period of time, fans were worried she may lose her life to the cancer.
Abby Lee Miller Plans to Walk Again by September After Being Wheelchair-Bound for Over a Year https://t.co/BlflhTliEw
— People (@people) June 3, 2019
Miller is tough and refused to go down without a fight. Today, she is not only free from prison, but she is cancer-free as well. While the treatments saved her life, they did take a toll on her physical health as well. She is currently confined to a wheelchair and unable to walk without assistance. Still, she refuses to give up hope that she will one day soon regain her mobility and be able to do what she enjoys most: dancing.
In an emotional Instagram post, Miller previously detailed the journey she went though as she fought cancer. She described chemotherapy as “poison.”
“I underwent emergency surgery for an infection in my spine. This mass/tumor choking my spinal cord turned out to be Burkitt Lymphoma. I endured ten rounds of chemo therapy (each lasting 6 days with 4/ 24hr bags pumping poison into my body ending with a spinal tap in 3 spots, plus another shot of Chemo into my tailbone area up the spinal cord around my brain cavity).”
Along with the lengthy caption, Miller shared a photo of her bare back with a long scar stretching the length of her spine.
