NEED TO KNOW
- TikToker Anna Grace Phelan, 19, died on May 23, less than one year after being diagnosed with brain cancer
- Her family announced the news on her account, writing in part, “So many of you have followed her journey through a difficult battle with cancer and bore witness to her powerful testimony of faith”
- Phelan documented her cancer journey for her followers on social media
TikToker Anna Grace Phelan has died, less than one year after being diagnosed with brain cancer. She was 19 years old.
Phelan’s family announced her death in a post shared on her account on Saturday, May 24. According to her obituary, she died on Friday, May 23.
“It is with great sadness to announce that our beautiful daughter, Anna Grace Phelan, went home to be with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” the family wrote in their post. “So many of you have followed her journey through a difficult battle with cancer and bore witness to her powerful testimony of faith.”
“Thank you for the countless thousands of prayers for healing and peace,” they continued. “May we all rejoice with the assurance that she is in Heaven now, and she has been healed. Let us also remember that the only path to the promised kingdom of Heaven is through salvation in Jesus Christ.”
Per the obituary, the Georgia-based influencer is survived by her parents, William “Buddy” Phelan and Nadine Phelan, her brother Harper Phelan, her four grandparents, and “a host of aunts, uncles and cousins, who love her very much.”
Since graduating from high school in Jefferson, Ga., Phelan had worked as a receptionist at a medical practice, and was very involved with her local Christian church.
Phelan, originally from Florida, documented her cancer journey on social media since she began experiencing symptoms last summer — just days before she was set to begin college.
According to a GoFundMe page set up in her name, Phelan was eventually diagnosed with a grade 4 malignant brain tumor that was categorized as a glioma — a growth of cells that starts in the brain or spinal cord, according to the Mayo Clinic.
In a TikTok, Phelan shared that her initial symptoms included numbness on one side of her face and in one of her legs. She received an MRI scan, which showed a lesion on her brain, and eventually had a brain biopsy, which showed her cancer.
“This is definitely the hardest news I’ve ever received,” she said in another TikTok video announcing her cancer diagnosis in September 2024. “By all means, this is not easy. Just going to trust in the Lord and try and keep pushing forward.”
In later videos, Phelan gave her followers insight into her radiation therapy and opened up about her worsening symptoms, which included breathing problems and dizziness.
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Several of the influencer’s last videos showed her spending time with friends and family. On May 15, she shared video footage of her friends gathering for a small party in her backyard.
Just one day prior, she spoke candidly about how her brain tumor had grown and was inoperable, and thanked her nearly 140,000 TikTok followers for their support.
“Keep me in your prayers,” Phelan said in the May 14 TikTok. “Thank you all so much.”
The influencer’s family is set to honor her with a funeral in Georgia on May 29.
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