Kim Kardashian revealed that she suffered a major health scare that hit close to home in light of her father Robert Kardashian’s death from esophageal cancer in 2003.
The reality TV star appeared in a hospital bed in the trailer for season eight of The Kardashians, wearing a hospital gown and no makeup.
Kim shared in the trailer that she had “something called esophagitis” – inflammation of the esophagus that is typically diagnosed via an endoscopy.
In the clip, someone in the background asks her, “Didn’t your father…isn’t it what he died of?” before the scene switches to Kim’s mother, Kris Jenner, in a confessional. “I can’t; it makes me want to cry,” she admitted.
Losing Robert
© Ron Galella Collection via GettyRobert was just 59 years old when he passed away in 2003, two months after being diagnosed with the disease. In the years since, his family have worked to raise awareness of esophageal cancer, and even opened the UCLA Robert G. Kardashian Center for Esophageal Health in 2019.
“I have friends that I have referred to the Robert G. Kardashian Center, and it has saved their lives,” Kim said at the fifth anniversary of the center’s founding. “It makes me proud to hear them be so grateful that they found a place that was dedicated to the one thing that would help them.”
The mom of four added that she was “glad that I can contribute to the conversation surrounding esophageal health, even if it’s just to bring awareness.”
Robert was married to Kris Jenner from 1978 to 1991, and welcomed Kourtney, Kim, Khloé and Rob Kardashian during that time. After their divorce, Kris married decathlete Caitlyn Jenner and they welcomed Kendall and Kylie Jenner together.
© InstagramKim paid tribute to her late father in 2025 on the 22nd anniversary of his death with a moving message. “Thank you for always protecting the family from heaven,” she wrote on social media. “Can’t believe I was 22 years old when you passed away, and it’s been 22 years today since you went to heaven.”
“I’ve known you just as long as you’ve been gone. I hope you’re so proud of all of us. We love you, Dad, and miss you soooooooooo much.”
Kim’s health battle revealed
© Getty ImagesKim has been open about her health challenges in the past, including the aneurysm she developed from the immense stress of her divorce from Kanye West after eight years of marriage.
The pair share four young kids, including North, 13, Saint, 10, Chicago, eight, and Psalm, seven. In a 2025 episode of The Kardashians, the All’s Fair actress revealed that doctors had discovered the issue in a scan.
© Hulu“I did a Prenuvo scan, and they called me today, and they’re like, ‘Everything looks great. But you have an aneurysm in your brain,'” she explained. “They’re like, ‘It’s been there for like years. It was here a few years ago.'”
“And then I asked, I was like, ‘Can I wait? ‘Cause what makes it rupture?’ And they’re like, ‘Just stress,'” she concluded. A brain aneurysm is a widening or bulging of a blood vessel wall, which can be life-threatening if it leaks or ruptures.
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