Former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Brandi Glanville has revealed new details about a debilitating facial parasite that has upended her health and finances, prompting a GoFundMe campaign to cover mounting medical costs. The 53-year-old reality personality has been candid about her health battles in recent years, linking the onset of her condition to ruptured breast implants she claims clogged her lymph nodes. Although the implants have since been removed, Glanville maintains they triggered a cascade of issues, including a parasitic infection that has spread down her right arm and formed a “fungal ball” on her face.
Glanville Opens Up About Health Struggles on Podcast
During Friday’s episode of her “Brandi Glanville Unfiltered” podcast, Glanville admitted the difficulty of asking for financial assistance. Her close friend Gina Rodriguez established the GoFundMe on her behalf.
“I’m embarrassed, honestly, because I don’t like to ask for help.”
“I never thought I would do this,” she added, noting that her close friend Gina Rodriguez, who set up the GoFundMe told her, “You have no choice.”
Co-host James Maas offered support, framing the situation as a systemic failure.
“It’s not embarrassing. What’s embarrassing is the whole medical system … You need a GoFundMe.”
GoFundMe Details Diagnoses and Treatment Plan
The fundraising page, which has already raised over $15,000, outlines the complexity of Glanville’s medical situation. According to the page:
“For the past three years, RHOBH Alum, Brandi Glanville has been fighting an illness that has completely changed her life. She has gone from doctor to doctor searching for answers while her health continued to decline. Now, after years of uncertainty, she finally has diagnoses and a treatment plan, but the road ahead is long, painful and incredibly expensive.
Brandi has been diagnosed with highly resistant ESBL Klebsiella and Enterobacter with biofilm, Coccidioidomycosis (Valley Fever), Demodex dermatitis and mononucleosis.
Doctors have also identified a fungal ball in her face that needs to be removed. Her treatment plan requires months of daily IV medication through a PICC line, and she is expected to remain on treatment for at least 4–6 months, possibly longer depending on how her body responds.
And the IV treatment is only part of what lies ahead. Brandi has multiple procedures and surgeries ahead of her. She needs the fungal ball removed from her face, old metal dental work removed and her breast implants removed as part of the treatment plan recommended by her doctors.
Unfortunately, treatment has not been easy. Despite enduring 12 hours of IV medication daily and everything that comes along with it, she has experienced very little improvement so far. She is exhausted, in pain and trying to mentally prepare herself for months more of treatment and surgeries.
The financial toll has become overwhelming.
Even with insurance, Brandi’s treatment alone is costing approximately $3,300–$6,000 every month. That does not include all of the additional expenses associated with her upcoming surgeries, procedures, medications, doctors, dental work and everyday living expenses while she is unable to work normally.
Right now, the only work Brandi is able to continue doing consistently is her podcast. The illness and daily treatment have made it extremely difficult for her to work and earn the income she normally would, at the exact time her medical expenses have become enormous.”
Financial Burden Mounts Amid Ongoing Treatment
Glanville joins a growing number of Americans forced to seek crowdfunding for serious medical expenses. Her frustration with the situation is palpable; she has reportedly threatened to remove the fungal ball herself if a doctor will not perform the procedure. The GoFundMe description notes that while asking for help is not easy for her, the physical, financial, and mental toll has become too much, and she simply wants to “get her life back.”