View fans have been left teary-eyed as they witnessed a “rare” show of emotion from host Whoopi Goldberg as she interviewed a teenage girl battling a rare brain tumor.
As part of Brain Tumor Awareness Month, Whoopi, 68, and her cohost, Sara Haines, invited Mya Jackson, 15, to Thursday’s show, with her mom, Tanya, and surprised the brave teen with a meet and greet with her favorite singer, Sofia Carson.
In highly emotional scenes, Mya – who was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) at the age of six – was seen hugging Sofia, 31, while Whoopi helped mum-of-three Sara wipe away tears with a tissue – but even the Sister Act star couldn’t keep it together and struggled to get her words out by the end of the segment.
While trying to reach the Make A Wish foundation, which had made Mya’s dream come true, Whoopi had to pause and compose herself as she fought back tears, her voice breaking – and fans were shocked to see her like this.
Whoopi Goldberg fought back tears on The View on Thursday as she interviewed a teen battling a rare condition called neurofibromatosis
Mya Jackson, seen here with mother Tanya, is preparing for her 89th round of chemotherapy
Whoopi, 68, helped her cohost, Sara Haines, wipe away tears with a tissue midway through the interview
The View surprised Mya by hosting a meet and greet with her favorite singer, Sofia Carson
On ….’
A third person admitted, “Getting a little teary-eyed at Mya’s story,” and a fourth viewer added, “I can’t do this segment.. I can’t do it right now.. I’m a 51 year old man. ..and I’m totally confused by this story…’
Someone else posted: ‘Wow! What a tearjerker of an episode! Mya has such a beautiful spirit. Her parents have raised a vibrant young lady and they must be so proud. Thanks to @Disney and #TheView for making Mya’s wish come true.”
Revealing why she didn’t hesitate to meet Mya, Sofia explained to Whoopi: “I think there are few more important things in the world than the privilege of being able to make Mya laugh.”
Sofia then turned to Mya and said, “To be able to grant your wish is one of the greatest honors of my life and you are my hero and everyone here is a hero,” before confirming that Disney’s design team had created a custom going to make a costume. of Sofia’s Descendants character Evie for Mya.
Whoopi then said, “Mya and Tanya, thank you for joining us today. Sofia, you are the queen we always knew you were and thank you for making that happen for Mya today.”
The Oscar winner then struggled to get her words out as she paused and took a few deep breaths before informing viewers, “To learn more about the magic… of making wishes come true… visit wish. org/disney. ‘
Earlier in the segment, Tanya confirmed that her daughter – who was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis after eye surgery – was doing “as well as she could.”
Whoopi became emotional and described Mya as ‘one of the bravest kids anyone has ever met’
Sofia, 31, said it was a “privilege to make Mya laugh” and meet her in person
Mum-of-three Sara was in tears as she asked Mya what she wants people to know about her
A fan of The View spoke to X and said they “very rarely” see host Whoopi get emotional
Another viewer urged Whoopi to “keep it together” and said they were also “a mess.”
Someone else described it as a ‘tearjerker of an episode’ and praised the ‘beautiful’ Mya
‘We can only take it day by day with the disease. We hope to be back in Boston in the next two months for her fourth brain surgery, and we’ll continue to do chemo, 89 chemo treatments and go from there,” Tanya added.
When Sara asked Mya what she wants people to know about her, the brave teenager – who has completely lost her hearing due to the condition – replied: ‘I want people to know and understand that I am just like any other 15-year-old. old, boy or girl.
‘That I like to color, I like to dance, I like to play with my dogs. And I like wearing the Descendants costumes,” before admitting that she loves Sofia because “she’s always happy.”
NF2 causes tumors to grow on nerves, but many of them grow in the brain and spine, and Mya had her first tumor removed when she was six.
During a pre-recorded interview, Mya’s father Craig described it as a ‘complex illness’, while Tanya admitted the ‘hardest part’ was seeing how her daughter had ‘isolated herself’ due to her illness.