Tulsi Gabbard gets emotional over husband’s cancer recovery: 'He gets frustrated a lot'

WASHINGTON,DC: Tulsi Gabbard has shared a deeply personal update on her husband Abraham’s battle with a rare form of cancer, offering an intimate look at the surgery, difficult recovery and uncertainty still facing the couple.

In an emotional video posted Thursday, August 20, Gabbard recalled the moment Abraham told her about his diagnosis and described watching him endure hours of surgery, severe postoperative pain and a demanding rehabilitation program.

The video also captures quieter moments between the couple, ending with an embrace and a simple “I love you.”

Tulsi Gabbard gets emotional on camera

Earlier this year, Gabbard said, she received a phone call from Abraham that immediately sounded different.

He had just spoken with his doctor and learned that he had been diagnosed with sacral chordoma, an exceptionally rare form of cancer affecting the sacrum, the bone at the base of the spine.

The video then shifts from Gabbard recounting the diagnosis to footage from Abraham’s time in hospital, giving viewers a glimpse of the physical ordeal behind her words.

Gabbard said she was relieved when she finally saw him after the operation, but the moment was also frightening.

“I was so happy to see him when they wheeled him back into that recovery room,” she recalled. “But it was also really scary, which I didn't expect.”

Several weeks after the operation, the pathology results gave doctors confidence that the cancerous bone and tissue had been successfully removed.

Nearly three months after the surgery, Abraham was continuing his recovery through an intensive physical-therapy programme.

But Gabbard acknowledged that rehabilitation has not been easy. “He gets frustrated a lot because he wants to be able to make progress faster,” she said.

Gabbard expressed gratitude toward the medical professionals involved in Abraham’s treatment, including his surgeon, pathologist and anesthesiologist.

The most tender moment of the video comes at the end.

Tulsi looks visibly emotional as she stops speaking and Abraham can be seen embracing her. The two then tell each other, “I love you.”

Tulsi Gabbard's exit from Trump administration

Tulsi had earlier stepped back from public duties as Abraham faced cancer.

Gabbard, who served as Director of National Intelligence, stepped away from her position on May 22 amid her husband’s cancer battle.

At the time, she described her husband as a central figure in her personal and professional life referring to him as “my rock throughout our eleven years of marriage”. 

The decision reflected the intensely personal circumstances facing the couple as Abraham underwent treatment and began what would become a lengthy recovery.