Sandra Lee claims that her cancer battle and the “heartbreak” of Andrew Cuomo’s split will “fuel and feed” her future.
Sandra lee
Ten years ago, Sandra Lee had it all: she was a poor child who rose to great success as an entrepreneur and was the host of the Emmy-winning television series Semi-Homemade Cooking.
The cheerful 58-year-old queen of pantry hacks was also the longstanding companion of New York governor Andrew Cuomo, a good-looking and active politician. Her life, which had seemed to be the ideal blend of sophistication and suburban sensibility, much like her well-known tablescapes, quickly went awry.
The first was the diagnosis of breast cancer in March 2015, which led to a complete hysterectomy and double mastectomy. Lee’s popular TV show terminated after 15 seasons later that year due to her inability to continue her continuous cancer treatment.
Her romance with the 66-year-old Cuomo collapsed in 2019, thrusting the intensely private Lee into the center of a protracted and widely reported scandal. With photographers capturing every moment of the breakup, Lee left New York for Los Angeles and stopped participating in public life.
Regarding Semi-Homemade’s demise, Lee tells Us Weekly, “When I got sick, I was so stressed out and overwhelmed that when the Food Network canceled me, I didn’t have the energy to fight them.”
The Sandra Lee of today is very different from the one who sits down with Us in her Malibu living room. The bright retro kitsch of the 1950s that typified Semi-Homemade is long gone. Someone who has endured hell and emerged triumphant, resolute, and more genuine takes its place.
She is now at last comfortable enough to discuss what transpired. She sadly remarks, “I’ve come to terms with the fact that I will never get over the heartbreak of loss of the last ten years.” “I will use the unending grief to fuel, nourish, and strengthen me,” the speaker said.
Lee stops to enjoy her iced tea, which she brewed from scratch, her face glowing in the sunlight without any makeup. Tears welling up in her eyes, she looks out her window at the placid Pacific Ocean and a pod of dolphins migrating up the coast.
It would be an understatement to say that her appraisal is accurate. However, the Sandra Lee of today is prepared to resume her daily activities. Her new television shows, Dinner Budget Showdown on Roku and Blue Ribbon Baking Championship on Netflix, will debut on August 9. She recently marked three years of dating Ben Youcef, a dashing younger man who came into her life and showed Lee how to fall in love and trust once more.
It was not simple. Cuomo might be someone else behind the scenes, despite appearing in Lee’s documentary about her cancer treatment as a loving and encouraging companion. He was getting more and farther away from Lee each day. “Governor Cuomo has always been totally supportive of Sandra through good times and bad,” a Cuomo spokesperson tells Us. She was a great first lady, partnered with him, and spent time with [his] girls. The governor and Sandra had busy, different lives and eventually drifted apart. Although splits are never easy and there are usually two sides to every tale, the governor prefers to look at the bright side and wishes her all the best in the years to come.
After undergoing a double mastectomy in 2015, Lee claimed that her birthday was the lowest time of her life.
Regarding her struggle with the illness, which she was diagnosed with in the same year, Lee explains that “cancer is aggressive and tricky, and it hides and waits.” “I had to deal with that as aggressively as I could for a whole year.”
Every birthday is important when receiving cancer treatment since it represents a person’s victory over the illness. “I stayed home alone for the day. Lee claims, “I was sitting on my lawn by myself. (Cuomo disputes this, claiming he made time in his schedule to attend.) “That particular birthday held special meaning for me. That day was a little too much for me, even though I don’t usually feel sorry for myself. Lee continues, “The damage was done, but eventually he came home and they went out to dinner.”
Breaking Point
Another tragedy shook her world after she endured the media coverage of the separation, a humiliating period of time that Lee will only refer to as “s–tty.” When Lee’s adored uncle on the West Coast was diagnosed with a terminal illness, she committed herself to his care right away. She says, “My job was to buy him some time.” “And I succeeded.” Lee made sure her uncle completed a large portion of his bucket list prior to his illness, and although his death in December 2023 caused her much anguish, it also served as a cathartic release.
Quietly, she continues, “I went into the bathroom and just started throwing up.” “I believe my body was simply clearing out those five years.” Lee holds back.
Around this time, her ex Cuomo’s life and career collapsed amid multiple allegations of unwanted sexual behavior with female staff members, following her bravery in stepping up during the pandemic. (Cuomo refuted the accusations, saying it was untrue that he had been unfaithful to Lee.) As the accusations mounted, the scandal turned into a media snowball, which finally caused his governorship to end. Cuomo’s separation with Lee was thrust back into the public eye by the scandal, and she felt as though she would be consumed by the scrutiny. Lee adopts a dignified demeanor in response to questions on the claims, declining to discuss specifics.
