Busy Philipps Had a Malignant Brain Tumour Removed Weeks Before Filming CBS's 'Cupertino'
Busy Philipps had a malignant brain tumour removed in early March 2025, weeks before she was set to begin filming her new CBS series Cupertino. She kept the diagnosis and surgery private for more than a year, fearing that disclosing her health could cost her the role.
The actor, 47 at the time of diagnosis, discovered the tumour in February 2025 after booking a Prenuvo full-body MRI scan — a precautionary scan that screens for more than 500 conditions. She learned about the scan through Instagram, she told People in an exclusive interview published 26 August 2026. The scan revealed a lesion on her brain that turned out to be a grade 2 oligodendroglioma, a malignant tumour defined by two specific genetic alterations. Grade 2 indicates a slower-growing cancer, but malignant nonetheless.
Philipps sought treatment from the same doctor who treats her daughter Birdie for epilepsy. The surgery to remove the tumour went smoothly, according to Variety. She underwent the operation in early March 2025, roughly six months before she would have begun filming Cupertino, which was set to start shooting in the spring.
Philipps had been cast in Cupertino as Natalia Boutella, the wealthy and flamboyant financial backer of a Silicon Valley law firm. The series was created by Robert and Michelle King, the duo behind The Good Wife and Evil. After learning she had the part, Philipps chose to keep her health issues under wraps, worried that producers might recast her if they learned she needed brain surgery.
The full timeline spans about six months from diagnosis to surgery to recovery, a period Philipps navigated while preparing for a major network role. She is now publicly sharing what happened for the first time.
What stands out is how the tumour was found at all. Philipps was not experiencing symptoms that pointed to a brain lesion. A full-body MRI she booked after seeing it promoted on social media caught something she had no other reason to look for. The scan is not part of routine medical screening, and Philipps has not been reported as having any known genetic predisposition. She simply saw a post, booked a scan, and the scan found a tumour.
Philipps is known to television audiences from Dawson's Creek, Cougar Town, and Girls5eva. Cupertino marks her first series-regular role on a broadcast network in over a decade. CBS has not publicly commented on how Philipps's health affected the production timeline for the show, which was created by the Kings and ordered straight to series — meaning no pilot episode is shot first before a full season is greenlit.
Philipps told People that she is now recovering and looking ahead to the work she fought to keep.
