Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi says she has been diagnosed with stage 1 cervical cancer after a recent cone biopsy, sharing the news in a TikTok filmed from her car between medical appointments. “Obviously not the news that I was hoping for,” Polizzi said, adding that doctors caught it early.
Polizzi, 38, identified the cancer as adenocarcinoma and said she is scheduled for a PET scan to check for signs of disease elsewhere. She said a hysterectomy is the likely next step in her treatment plan, describing the turn her year has taken: “So 2026 is not panning out how I wanted it to.”
Her update follows weeks of public posts about abnormal Pap results and follow-up procedures, including a colposcopy and biopsies, as she tried to make sense of escalating tests and the fear that comes with waiting for pathology. In the TikTok announcing the diagnosis, Polizzi repeatedly urged viewers to keep up with screenings, framing her own outcome as proof that routine care can catch dangerous changes before they spread.
Health agencies echo that message. The CDC recommends starting cervical cancer screening at 21, with testing options shifting as patients age and risk profiles change. The agency stresses that Pap and HPV tests can find precancer or cancer early, when treatment tends to be simpler.
The American Cancer Society’s guidance leans toward primary HPV testing starting at 25, repeating at multi-year intervals when results stay normal. The group has also backed supervised self-collection options to reach people who skip screening because of access barriers, discomfort, or past negative experiences in clinical settings.
Polizzi rose to fame on MTV’s “Jersey Shore” and later appeared in franchise spinoffs. She said she plans to tackle treatment head-on while using her platform to push a blunt takeaway: get checked, then keep your follow-ups.
