Bachelor in Paradise alum Joe Amabile has revealed that his speech is "90% back" but there is still progress to be made in his recovery journey.
|
ADVERTISEMENT
|
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
"I still struggle a little bit," Joe told GMA.
"I could think of what to say, but I would have a hard time vocalizing it. And I would say I'm about 90% back."
Despite the challenges that are still ahead of Joe, his doctor, Dr. Alexandra Miller -- the chief of neuro-oncology at the Perlmutter Cancer Center in New York -- said he has a "good prognosis" and "it was a really good thing and very lucky that he was able to find it early."
Joe elaborated of his low-grade astrocytoma, "According to my doctor, I wouldn't probably know about this until I eventually had a seizure."
Joe has been documenting his health crisis on social media for weeks.
The Dancing with the Stars alum explained of his decision to be so candid about his experience with fans, "I think being able to share so other people can relate, and people who are going through it, I think is, it's super important."
And Joe confirmed that his wife, Serena Pitt, whom he met on Bachelor in Paradise, has been by his side through it all.
"Unexpected challenges are going to be thrown your way and I feel like it has made me feel very grateful for the partner that I chose," Serena told GMA.
About two weeks after Joe had surgery, he went for his first run.
Shortly after having 23 staples removed from his head, Joe revealed on social media at the time that he was able to run over three miles and hopes to participate in the 2026 New York City marathon.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOWRELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Joe explained on August 12, about a week after his surgery, that he was off heavy painkillers.
"They did get the whole thing. When it comes to malignant brain tumors, they don't know what's left over, so I will be going on treatment," he previously shared.
Joe explained that his treatment going forward will be a pill "every day for the rest of my life to put the bad cells to sleep."
"And hopefully they stay asleep. And that's it, that's all I can do," he concluded.
On August 6, Joe revealed that he'd been discharged from the hospital.
Joe first revealed his brain tumor diagnosis to the world on July 13.
"I had to go get a brain MRI, and there was a blueberry-sized lesion in my brain that looks to be a glioma, which is a tumor," he told his fans via Instagram last month.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I think it's one of those things where you're like, 'Oh, something like this would never happen to me,' and here I am. They say it's really early stages. I hope they are able to get it all, and I'm fine," he shared.
Joe and Serena subsequently discussed Joe's brain lesion during the July 16 episode of their "Not Married to This" podcast.
The Bachelor in Paradise couple shared how they both had full-body MRI scans with Prenuvo -- with whom they were doing a professional partnership -- just to be proactive about their health.
About two days later, Joe said he received a phone call and thought he was going to be told he had an enlarged prostate because he tends to pee a lot during the night.
But when Joe spoke to his doctor on the phone, the Bachelor in Paradise alum was informed he had "a lesion" in his brain about the size of a marble or small grape.
"It's in the frontal lobe of my brain. The doctor was pretty alarming where he was like, 'You've got to go get this checked within the next week or two. It's urgent,'" Joe recalled.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Joe therefore scheduled another MRI, after which the radiologist characterized his lesion as an "early-stage glioma, which is a tumor." Joe said they believed it was Grade 1 or 2 at the time.
Joe said the news was pretty shocking because, "for the most part," he wasn't experiencing any symptoms.
"Now I kind of feel like I might have symptoms, but some of them are self-induced. So that's a difficult territory," Joe admitted.
He elaborated, "The symptoms I'm having now are more like lightheadedness, and I think a lot of it now is more anxiety, I believe. But who knows? What I would be experiencing more of [based on] where it is in my brain would be lack of motor skills, personality changes, and memory loss."
Joe acknowledged that the craniotomy would be "very dangerous" and "scary," and Serena added how titanium screws would be used to close up Joe's skull.
ADVERTISEMENT
Joe found fame when he competed on Season 14 of The Bachelorette starring Becca Kufrin in 2018.
After being a Night 1 boot, Joe returned for Season 5 of Bachelor in Paradise, where he fell in love with Kendall Long.
After Joe and Kendall split, Joe looked for love on Season 7 of Bachelor in Paradise in 2021 and found it with Serena.
Joe and Serena quietly tied the knot in a New York City courthouse in 2022 before having a bigger "magical" wedding for family and friends in South Carolina in September 2023.
Joe also previously competed on Season 27 of Dancing with the Stars and placed fifth with Jenna.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group or visit our The Bachelor homepage!
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
