Health

Madonna's family is in mourning ... because her stepmother has died.

The "Like a Virgin" singer's stepmom, Joan Ciccone, died Tuesday after a battle with a very aggressive cancer ... according to her obituary.

Joan was Madonna's housekeeper growing up in Michigan ... and a couple years after Madonna's mother died at age 30 -- also from cancer -- Joan married Madonna's father, Silvio Ciccone.

Eagles superfan Dunphy just revealed he sustained some rough injuries during his chest bump encounter with Jason Kelce earlier this month ... but, thankfully, he says he will not require surgery.

The diehard Philadelphia supporter -- who's gained fame over the years for his incredible array of Philly-themed stomach tattoos -- told No Shorts Media on Wednesday that test results showed he banged up his leg badly after he celebrated with Kelce at a pre-"Monday Night Football" celebration on Sept. 16.

He stated he was diagnosed with a "severe bone contusion" as well as several sprained ligaments ... but in a subsequent post on his Instagram page, he said all that would be required to heal is simply rest.

Brett Favre is speaking out after his shocking announcement this week ... with the NFL legend saying he greatly appreciates the "unbelievable show of support."

The Green Bay Packers great posted video to his Instagram about 48 hours after testifying at a welfare reform hearing on Capitol Hill ... where he announced he has Parkinson's.

Wow, what an overwhelming amount of support from you all," Favre captioned the post, adding, "Thank you and this is just the beginning of another mountain to climb."

It turns out you probably don't want a hippopotamus for Christmas ... 'cause they've got some pretty dangerous chompers -- just ask the British tourist who ended up in one's mouth, and then the hospital.

Roland Cherry -- a 63-year-old Brit -- was canoeing in Zambia on part of a 5-week African safari ... when he says a hippo charged his boat and latched its teeth around him.

Cherry -- who spoke with UK-based outlet Sky News -- says his wife Shirly swam away from the animal to safety ... but, Cherry dislocated his shoulder when the hippo hit and couldn't get away from the temperamental beast.

Halsey celebrated Bi Visibility Day in an unconventional way this year ... sharing an update from the hospital following a "very scary" health incident.

The singer took to Instagram Wednesday, where she uploaded a belated Bi Visibility Day post ... which featured her lying in a hospital bed as her fiancé Avan Jogia looked on.

According to the hitmaker, she spent the day "celebrating by dying with a man by my side" ... though she clarified she wasn't actually near death, and it was just a joke.

Fatman Scoop passed away after collapsing onstage in Connecticut last month ... and, now the medical examiner has revealed his official cause of death.

A rep for the Connecticut M.E.'s office tells TMZ ... Scoop -- born Isaac Freeman III -- passed away from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

We're told they consider this cause of death to be natural ... no foul play suspected.

Wrestling star Alan Vera -- who just narrowly missed qualifying for Team USA's Olympic roster earlier this year -- has sadly died at 33 years old ... after he suffered a medical emergency while playing soccer earlier this summer.

USA Wrestling Executive Director Rich Bender announced the tragic news on Wednesday ... revealing Vera had been in the hospital fighting to recover from a July 29 cardiac arrest when he passed away.

"The wrestling community mourns the loss of a great champion, whose incredible life impacted so many within USA Wrestling and around the world," Bender said.

PSA: Proceed with caution -- this is gnarly!

Strongman athlete Dan Jones suffered a gruesome injury during a recent competition ... when BOTH of his knees snapped during a race, and it was caught on video!

The freak accident happened during a farmer's carry-type race at a competition in Southport (UK) earlier this month when Jones, a senior IT analyst by day, was approaching the finish line.

Jones was carrying 80kg (176 lbs.) when he suddenly collapsed ... and the way he fell will make your stomach turn.

Brett Favre tells TMZ Sports he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in early January ... after he began experiencing trouble using his right arm and hand.

The Hall of Fame quarterback made the revelations to us in late August while discussing various football topics. At the time, he requested we don't report it, but, after he went public with his diagnosis during a hearing on Capitol Hill on Tuesday -- he gave us permission to run it.

Favre explained he first had suspicions something was up when his dominant arm -- which he used to throw 508 touchdown passes in his 20-year NFL career -- would get "stuck."

Brett Favre just made a sad revelation on Capitol Hill ... the 54-year-old gunslinger announced he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson's.

The legendary Green Bay Packers quarterback made the announcement during a welfare reform hearing in D.C. Tuesday ... where Favre said he believed he was on the verge, with the company, Prevacus, of developing medication to help treat head injuries.

"Sadly, I also lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug I thought would help others," Favre said during his opening statement.

Nev Schulman is getting back on the proverbial horse, or in his case, an electric bike ... tooling around New York after breaking his neck in a near-fatal collision.

The "Catfish" star was all smiles Monday in the Big Apple, where he was zooming through a busy Manhattan street on his e-bike ... only 7 weeks removed from his traumatic accident.

Nev looks pretty confident here ... smiling and taking one hand off the handlebars to wave at photogs ... all while wearing a helmet, and with his wife Laura Perlongo holding on.

Caitlin Clark had a rough go of it in her playoff debut -- scoring just 11 points in the Indiana Fever's 93-69 blowout loss to the Connecticut Sun -- leaving the arena with a black eye after getting poked in the eye.

The eye injury occurred early in Sunday's contest against the Sun, with guard DiJonai Carrington poking the AP Rookie of the Year just 90 seconds into the game.

An alternate angle shows Carrington's digits going directly into Clark's eye -- sending her to the ground in pain.

Perry Farrell's consulting with experts ... getting professional help after his outburst onstage ended the tour for Jane's Addiction prematurely -- with his wife saying he's going to see a neurologist.

Etty Lau Farrell -- wife of the Jane's Addiction frontman -- posted a statement Saturday assuring fans PF will recover after Perry appeared to throw a punch at bandmate Dave Navarro in the middle of their Boston show last weekend.

In the post, Etty says she's grateful for all the kind words of love and support during this difficult time ... saying kind people attract kindness -- and, despite his actions, Farrell insists her husband is very kind.

Christian Koloko -- who had a career-threatening blood clot issue earlier this year -- says he's ready for a fresh start with the Lakers, telling TMZ Sports he's optimistic he can play this season!

We spoke with Koloko at LAX just days after he signed a two-way contract with the Purple & Gold ... a 7-foot-1 center that could provide valuable depth with Anthony Davis prone to injury.

"I feel amazing," the Cameroonian athlete said.

Don King says his health's much better than Mike Tyson's suggesting ... claiming he's feeling fine and dandy after his 10-day stint in the hospital -- despite MT basically saying he's on death's door.

The legendary boxing promoter released a statement via his reps Saturday ... telling fans he's recovering and feeling fine -- and, he's got a lot of love for Mike Tyson.

It's a short, to-the-point statement ... but, clearly DK wants everyone to know his health issues aren't as bad as previously reported.

Selena Gomez’s keeping it raw and real, delivering a message to haters after opening up about her personal life -- not being able to carry children, being bipolar -- saying they can kindly "f*** off."

The actress got candid at the recent Women in Film event ... she wants to be a voice for women, because even though she's a celeb -- everyone's got their own struggles at the end of the day.

She also spoke out about other tough parts of her life ... telling attendees there’s zero shame about having issues, and asking for help. "There's power in being vulnerable."