Supermodel Anok Yai had surgery to correct a congenital defect
Anok Yai’s lungs have been “slowly destroying” due to a congenital abnormality.
The 28-year-old model’s health started to deteriorate, and she had surgery to treat the unidentified ailment. Her symptoms included coughing up blood and having trouble breathing.
“I’ve been dealing with this silent battle for the past year,” she posted on Instagram.
I discovered that I had a congenital condition that was progressively killing my lungs and overtaxing my heart.
A persistent cough that began as asymptomatic for much of my childhood progressed to chest discomfort, episodes of coughing up blood, and eventually difficulty breathing.
“I decided to deal with this while looking for the ideal physician at the ideal moment. I soon came to the conclusion that there would never be a “right time” because my condition would only get worse.
“The universe has a way of slowing you down and waking you up, but I’ve always believed I could outwork or outrun anything.
“So, I am eternally grateful to Dr. Robert Cerfolio and his kind and skilled team for granting me additional time, as they enabled me to have a successful robotic lung surgery yesterday.”
Anok will be “forever grateful” to her medical staff and everyone who has helped and supported her.
“And I am eternally grateful for Dr. Harmik Soukiasian and everyone at the @beverlyhillsconciergehealth for discovering my condition,” she continued.
“Thank you to all of the wonderful nurses and doctors at @nyulangone.”
And I want to express my gratitude to my family and friends for being the first people I saw when I woke up.
I’m healing for the time being. However, I will return. See you [heart emoji] (sic).
Only a few weeks after winning Model of the Year at the 2025 Fashion Awards in London, Anok had surgery.
“It is such an honor to be named Model of the Year,” she stated.
“Resilience and community are key components of my journey from Egypt to South Sudan to the United States.”
“Everyone who has ever seen their story in mine deserves this acknowledgment. I appreciate you honoring us.
Anok has previously spoken candidly about the bigotry she encountered while “growing up dark-skinned in New Hampshire.”
“There was a lot of racism,” she previously told Elle magazine. Many children teased me because of the color of my skin.
The youngster in the corner who kept to myself was me.
“I never really had a certain group of friends. I floated around more. I was constantly peering in from the outside.
She has been able to “feel comfortable with my separation from my peers” and has always aimed “for bigger things than the small town” in where she was raised.
