NBC News Correspondent Antonia Hylton Reveals Rare Cancer Diagnosis

NBC News correspondent Antonia Hylton is putting her “health first” after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

According to the 30-year-old journalist, she began experiencing “constant inflammation” in her stomach about two years ago. She explained to the Today Show crew that it was “easy” for her to “write it off” since she was always traveling and didn’t have the best diet.

It wasn’t until she saw an August 2023 segment about Craig Melvin‘s late brother’s colon cancer diagnosis at only 39 years old — and a TikTok about a 24-year-old woman with stage four colon cancer — that she finally decided to see a doctor.

“Something about that really stuck with me,” she said, adding that her symptoms were only getting worse at that point. “I was waking up, my face was swollen. I was having trouble going to the bathroom for days on end. I went to see a specialist who sent me for a colonoscopy.”

After the procedure, Hylton’s doctors told her that she had a polyp, which was actually a neuroendocrine tumor. The rare form of cancer is described as affecting cells that release hormones into the bloodstream.

“I was panicking,” she revealed. “It really wasn’t until I saw my doctor face to face that I started to feel that sense of relief. And also a sense of empowerment — of you took action, you did something.”

Fortunately, Hylton caught the cancer early.

“I had a series of procedures to remove tissue and screening tests to see if the cancer had spread,” she said. “The last scan showed I’m all clear.”

With the health scare behind her, Hylton opened up about how she has shifted her priorities.

“I learned a really important lesson at 30 to listen to myself and to put myself first,” she said. “I love my job. I worked hard here at NBC, and I’m not going to stop doing that. But I’ve learned the lesson that I really need to put my health first and not push these things off.”