Amy Schumer says ‘moon face’ comments online led to Cushing syndrome diagnosis

LOS ANGELES (TNND) — Actress and comedian Amy Schumer is crediting Internet trolls for helping her figure out she had Cushing syndrome.

She shared the news during the Jan. 22 episode of the hit podcast “Call Her Daddy.”

“A year ago, the Internet really came for me,” Schumer told Alex Cooper, who is the show’s host.

In February 2024, Schumer called out people on social media who ridiculed her for what she described as her “puffier than normal appearance.”

At the time, she said she had a “moon face.” She also said she was diagnosed with endometriosis, which the World Health Organization (WHO) classifies as a disease that causes tissue similar to the lining of the uterus to grow outside the uterus. It often causes pain in the pelvis and makes it harder for a woman to get pregnant.

There are some medical and hormonal things going on in my world right now but I’m okay,” Schumer previously wrote on Instagram.

Schumer joked about all the “input about my face” and sarcastically noted that she has “enjoyed feedback and deliberation about my appearance” for almost 20 years.

Now, she’s grateful for the feedback, saying medical professionals also offered advice.

“Doctors were chiming in in the comments and they were, like, ‘No, no something’s really up. Your face looks so crazy,’” Schumer told Cooper.

Schumer went on to say she was then diagnosed with Cushing’s syndrome, which the Mayo Clinic said occurs when the body has too much of the hormone cortisol over an extended period of time.

“This can result from the body making too much cortisol, or from taking medicines called glucocorticoids, which affect the body the same way as cortisol,” according to the Mayo Clinic. “Too much cortisol can cause some of the main symptoms of Cushing syndrome —–a fatty hump between the shoulders, a rounded face, and pink or purple stretch marks on the skin. Cushing syndrome also can cause high blood pressure or bone loss. Sometimes, it can cause type 2 diabetes.”

The Mayo Clinic said treatments help lower the body’s cortisol levels and improve symptoms.

“The sooner treatment starts, the better the chances for recovery,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

For Schumer, her treatment started about a year ago, which was right after her diagnosis.

“At first, I was like, “F— off,’” Schumer said during her interview with Cooper.

But then she remembered something important: she had been getting steroid injections for scars related to a breast reduction and C-section after giving birth to her son, Gene, in 2019.

“I was getting these steroid injections, and so it gave me this thing called Cushing syndrome — which I wouldn’t have known if the Internet hadn’t come for me so hard,” Schumer told Cooper.

Schumer, in her Instagram post, said while she feels “a woman doesn’t need any excuse for her physical appearance and owes no explanation,” she wanted to advocate for self love.

“Like every other women/person some days I feel confident and good as hell and others I want to put a bag over my head,” she wrote.