Teddi Mellencamp left The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2020 after three seasons. Yet, she’s kept fans updated on her life since then, including separating from her husband, Edwin Arroyave. The divorce was called off in April 2025 after she needed emergency brain surgery earlier that year. Now, the reality star is begging for help amid a Stage 4 cancer battle.
Teddi Mellencamp Battling Stage 4 Cancer
Teddi Mellencamp was diagnosed with Stage 2 melanoma in 2022. She had numerous surgeries to remove cancerous moles. Most melanomas don’t progress beyond Stage 4. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case for the RHOBH alum.
She announced in 2025 that the cancer had metastasized to her brain and lungs. She had privately undergone brain surgery earlier that year to remove four brain tumors. Several others were inoperable.
While the Stage 4 diagnosis was scary, Teddi Mellencamp remained strong and determined to fight. She competed on Season 7 of The Masked Singer.
RHOBH Shows Aftermath Of Brain Surgeries
Teddi Mellencamp is under the care of doctors. In October 2025, she said on the podcast she co-hosts with Tamra Judge that there was “no detectable cancer.” However, her father, musician John Mellencamp, sparked concern earlier this year after saying the RHOBH alum was “struggling.”
However, she later clarified that he meant struggling mentally, not that she had a medical setback. Teddi Mellencamp took to Instagram this week to mark a year since her brain surgery. She shared a photo of the scars on her skull from the operation. The photo also shows the hair regrowth progress when the photo was taken.
She Begs Fans For Help
Teddi Mellencamp recently asked her doctor to put her on medicine after gaining weight. The doctor refused. She turned to fans for help on another issue that’s bothering her: Her hair. She begged for help managing her regrown hair.
“It’s not lost on me how much my hair has grown since the brain surgeries. However, I currently have the same hairstyle as Cruz and I don’t have nearly enough “rizz” for that,” she wrote on Instagram. The RHOBH star asked fans for suggestions and tips on what she should do with her hair.
Her post received a lot of comments, including support from her fellow Real Housewives stars. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Angie Katsanevas offered to fly out to Beverly Hills and style Teddi Mellencamp’s hair. Check out some of the other suggestions:
- “Omg a short icy blonde choppy look would be fire!!!”
- “I say just keep your inner Charlize Theron on because the short hair is working for me”
- “Just swoop those bangs like your father would do! Lean into that Mellencamp energy”
- “Headbands everyday all day is what I did! You look beautiful no matter what”
- “I added a few tape in extensions around the front of my hair. It made such a difference”
- “My goodness short hair suits you so much!!”
- “Mohawk or Feaux-hawk!!! Embrace it and it will grow out so fast!”
- “Go blonder you’re gorgeous and blonde pixie would be darling on you!”
After her brain surgery, Teddi Mellencamp spent some months rocking a bald look before turning to wigs. She will look as beautiful as ever, no matter what hairstyle she chooses. Share your suggestions in the comments.
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger
