Tennis legend Serena Williams has revealed she recently had a benign lateral cyst the size of a small grapefruit removed from her neck.
The 43-year-old insists ‘everything is fine’ and shared the update from a hospital bed.
Williams revealed the procedure in a video on social media, saying she found a lump on her neck in May and was told at the resulting MRI exam that she didn’t have to have it removed if she didn’t want to.
Williams didn’t initially choose it, “but it kept growing,” she said.
“So many things I missed like the @glamourmag Woman of the Year awards, @RafaelNadal’s retirement and I’m still recovering but getting better. Health always comes first,” Williams said in a separate post.
Williams posted a video to her TikTok detailing her procedure to remove a cyst from her neck
Williams has been active off the field over the two years, including hosting the ESPYS in July
‘In May I discovered a lump in my neck. I immediately went to the doctor for an MRI and was told I have a brachial cyst. Have you ever heard of that?’ Williams said in the video.
“They said I don’t have to have it removed if I don’t want to. So I didn’t get it, but it kept growing. I decided to have more tests done, and three tests and one biopsy later everything is still negative, but the doctors advised that I should have it removed as soon as possible because it was the size of a small grapefruit and it could become infected or, worse, started leaking.’
“So this is me removing it. I feel so grateful, and luckily everything worked out, and most importantly I am healthy. I still made it to US Pop with Olympia as promised. And yes, everything is fine.’
Williams was spotted on the floor at a Green Day concert in Los Angeles last month, jogging around in a circle alongside other fans of the rock band, looking none the worse for wear.
Williams has spent a lot of time with her husband, Alexis, and two daughters since her retirement
Williams just turned 43 in September and has been completely retired from tennis for two years since her swan song tournament at the 2022 US Open.
Williams is married to entrepreneur Alexis Ohanian and the couple have two daughters, 7-year-old Olympia and Adira, 1.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion also returned to the US Open last month wearing a throwback denim skirt, similar to the one she wore during her playing days.