Who is Howie Mandel's grandson? Comedian and TV personality reveals 9-year-old's fight with leukemia

Howie Mandel recently opened up about his grandson's cancer diagnosis, adding that the cancer is now in remission. According to People Magazine, Mandel's young grandson, Axel, was previously diagnosed with leukaemia, which is an autoimmune condition.

This is the first time the America's Got Talent judge has spoken publicly about his grandson's condition. During his appearance on the podcast, In Depth With Graham Bensinger, he said:

"[My grandson’s] issue is an autoimmune issue, right? It’s leukemia. In fact, that’s the first time we’ve ever talked about it on camera.”

Howie Mandel, who shares three children with his wife, Terry Soil Mandel, has three grandchildren from his two daughters. His eldest daughter, Jackelyn Shutlz, is married to Alex Shutlz, and the couple welcomed two children: Abbey and Axel. Mandel's other daughter, Riley Ehrlich, welcomed a child last year.

About Howie Mandel's grandson's diagnosis

During his appearance on the In Depth With Graham Bensinger podcast on Wednesday, September 17, Howie Mandel was joined by his eldest daughter, Jackelyn Shutlz. Both of them were visibly emotional as they spoke about this difficult period in their lives. Madel opened up about his grandson's condition, saying:

"We’ve been on this dark roller coaster ever since, for years now. He’s doing good now, but he is in remission right now, but had to have a bone marrow transplant from his sister."

On the other hand, his daughter said:

"We don’t really talk about my son’s health and the struggles going on within the family at all, like publicly, we do with our family, but it’s nice to have that support system."

She also recalled the time she and her father faced backlash for their decision to wear masks while on their own podcast, Howie Mandel Does Stuff. She said:

"I got such hate in vitriol they thought it was because I didn't agree with their politics or whatever. And I was just, in my mind, I'm like, ‘They have no idea what I'm going through right now. They have no idea that I'm just trying to be able to go visit my son in the hospital.’"

Howie Mandel further recalled the day his family learned about his now nine-year-old son's diagnosis, while on a trip to Hawaii three or four years back. He added that Axel's condition was so severe at that time that he had to receive his first chemotherapy within the next twenty-four hours. He said:

"It was the most harrowing, mind-boggling, paralyzing horror show I’ve ever been part of."

He further noted how his extended family members have all come together to support Axel, saying:

"When something like that happens, it prioritizes. Nothing matters but the health and welfare of the people you love and the people that are closest to us. I know my wife says it brought the family together. I would give anything to not be together with any member of my family to have my grandchild’s health.”

His daughter added:

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"We’re just still dealing with the transplant, which is, I don’t think people realize that there’s so much that goes into treatment. That it’s not just the cancer alone, but it’s also the treatment afterwards and the follow up. It’s a really, really, really long, hard road, and we are really fortunate to be where we are right now, and for him to be happy, and he’s doing well. But we’re still dealing with, like, the bumps and the hurdles that go along with the diagnosis and the transplant.”

According to NBC, Howie Mandel was not present in last week's episode of America's Got Talent, as he had suffered the loss of an unnamed family member. He is slated to return this week to continue judging the incoming acts on the show.

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