Tina Knowles shudders at what could have happened after breast cancer diagnosis

Beyoncé Knowles’ mom, Tina Knowles, is sharing a warning to other women: Don’t delay your next mammogram.

On Tuesday, April 22, in an interview with People magazine, the matriarch of the Knowles family revealed she was diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer.

She continued, noting that if she hadn’t skipped her last mammogram, it likely wouldn’t have progressed as far as it did.

After being labeled one of the World’s Most Beautiful by People magazine, she told the publication that she “struggled with whether I would share that (cancer) journey” in her new book “Matriarch,” also released on April 22.

“I’m very private,” Tina Knowles continued. “But I decided to share it because I think it’s a lot of lessons in it for other women.”

According to her doctors, the business woman was told that if she hadn’t postponed her mammogram, the cancer found in her breast would have only been Stage 0, she told CBS News’ Gayle King in a separate interview.

“I’ve always tried to take care of myself. I was in disbelief,” she told King.

Explaining that she had postponed her mammogram due to COVID-19, Tina Knowles said her story is one other women can learn from.

“I think as women, sometimes we get so busy and we get so wrapped up and running around, but you must go get your test. Because if I had not gotten my test early, I mean, I shudder to think what could have happened to me,” she told People.

As People reported, while Tina Knowles doesn’t have a familial history of breast cancer, her ex-husband, Mathew Knowles, does.

In 2020, Mathew Knowles also announced his Stage 1 breast cancer diagnosis, revealing that he also has the BRCA2 gene mutation. According to the National Cancer Institute, the BRCA2 gene is a gene that produces “proteins that help repair damaged DNA.”

Those with a gene mutation “have increased risks of several cancers—most notably breast and ovarian cancer.”

In 2024, Tina Knowles, 71, underwent a lumpectomy to have the malignant tumor removed. While she is now cancer-free, she experienced “a serious post-surgical infection,” CBS News reported.

As a result, she almost missed Glamour’s 2024 Women of the Year event where she was honored.

Beyoncé encouraged her mom to skip the event and rest.

“A lot of my life, I just refused to be recognized. I would never take an award. I would never want the attention to me … and this was my saying, ‘I deserve this,’” she said.

Now, Tina Knowles told People she’s “healthier, eating better, I lost weight,” post cancer diagnosis.

She adds that her focus is now on giving “people hope” and “making the best of every day that I have left in this life.”