It’s a girl! Maria Menounos and husband Keven Undergaro welcome daughter via surrogate… after infertility issues and cancer battle

Maria Menounos welcomed her daughter Athena Alexandra via surrogate.

The TV presenter and her husband Keven Undergaro revealed the happy news Us weekly on Wednesday.

The 45-year-old star has been married to Keven since 2017, but after a decade of fertility struggles led to IVF treatments, the couple finally welcomed their ‘miracle baby’ Athena late last month.

She revealed to this week’s edition of Us Weekly, “It was the most special moment of my life. The doctor literally grabbed her and pulled her against me. I was sitting with her on my chest, and Keven and I kept looking at each other like, ‘Oh my God.'”

Adding: “It was just pure joy. It was like Christmas morning times a million. Athena is our miracle baby. I am so grateful to her.’

“It feels better than I could have ever imagined. It’s euphoric. I’ve felt for so long that something is missing. I’d go to kids’ birthday parties, and I’d be a little sad.”

The actress added, “And now I feel so grounded, like I finally know where I belong. The whole house is on happy crack! My dad, her Abuelita, her babysitter, all of us, it’s just so much love. People say you don’t care about your dogs anymore, but if I don’t crush Athena, I’ll crush them!’

The Today host further explained that when it came to her choice of name for the little one, she was inspired by the Greek Goddess of War and Wisdom and decided that would be the name after making a list.

She added, “We knew we wanted a Greek name. We had a list and everyone says when you see the baby you know, but that was totally untrue for us. We were like, ‘What do we do?’ Athena is the goddess of war and wisdom, and Keven loved the power of that name, so that was it!’

At the beginning of May, the entertainment journalist revealed her secret battle with cancer for the first time.

She shared with People that she had been diagnosed with stage two pancreatic cancer in January 2023.

Parents: The TV host and her husband Keven Undergaro revealed the happy news to Us Weekly on Wednesday; seen February 7, 2018

Power: In early May, the entertainment journalist first revealed her secret battle with cancer; seen on May 4, 2023

Maria underwent a successful operation to remove a 3.9 centimeter tumor, but because of the metastasis of the cancer, she also had to have a fibroid [a tumor of smooth muscle and connective tissue]had her spleen and 17 lymph nodes removed, which is how she earned the small scars on her abdomen.

The health scare followed a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes in June 2022. The conditions were somewhat related as it was painful cramps that led her to be diagnosed with diabetes but when her pain intensified she went back for an MRI of the whole body scan, and that’s how her cancer was discovered.

The tumor had previously been captured on scans, but had gone undetected due to its small size.

Last week, Maria shared on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast that it had doubled in size by the time a doctor noticed it on the MRI.

“The radiologist went back and he could see it and make an addendum and say, ‘Yeah, now that we know it was there, we can see it’s there,'” she recalls.

Speaking about her cancer battle to People, she added, “You can’t let fear get in the way. I had that moment where I thought I was a goner – but I’m fine because I caught this early enough.”

She previously opined that the chronic stress she suffered may have led to the development of both her pancreatic cancer and a benign brain tumor she had removed in 2017.

In July, Maria showed her fans all she had overcome when she shared a photo that highlighted her pancreatic cancer scars.

The TV presenter posed for a stunning mirror selfie in her bathroom in a skimpy bikini that revealed the tiny scars on her speckled stomach following surgery for the cancer she once feared would be a “death sentence” for her.

Showing off her toned stomach in the photo, along with her long, toned legs, Maria had a white shirt unbuttoned and draped around her arms for the casual shot.

“I look back on an operation earlier this year and am thankful for the strength God has blessed me with to get through it and of course for all the beautiful people he has sent to help me too!” she wrote in the caption.

“Now I see the scars I carefully sunscreen to protect and I smile,” she continued, adding a red heart emoji.

Cancer scare: Maria revealed in May that she had part of her pancreas, her spleen, a fibroid tumor and 17 lymph nodes removed after being diagnosed in January. She previously had a benign brain tumor removed in 2017

Unbelievable: Just days earlier, Maria spotted her stellar figure in a brown bandeau and bikini bottom, along with minor scars from surgery to remove pancreatic cancer that littered her taut tummy

She appeared to have taken the photo in her pristine white bathroom, which was decorated with elegant marble tiles and had a long counter top with his and hers sinks.

Several of her fans and followers were happy to see her wave her scars fearlessly.

‘God bless you! You are helping people like me where there is no cure for autoimmune disease,” the commenter wrote.

“Your scars show people they can heal,” added another.

A fan shared words of encouragement with Maria: “Those are not scars, Maria, those are warrior wounds, always remember that, much love.”