White House chief of staff Susie Wiles has shared a candid account of battling breast cancer while leading one of Washington’s most demanding operations, saying that on some days, simply getting out of bed and reporting for work required nearly all the strength she had.
In an op-ed published Sunday by USA Today, Wiles described undergoing chemotherapy as she continued serving as President Donald Trump’s chief of staff.
Cancer was on her mind from the moment she woke up and, at times, even while she was asleep, Wiles wrote.
“Fighting cancer is brutal and unrelenting,” she wrote. Concerns about treatment, test results and what the future might hold could overwhelm even a resilient person. At times, Wiles acknowledged, those fears overwhelmed her.
Some days, Wiles said, all of her energy went toward fighting the disease. On others, the basic routine of getting out of bed, dressing and going to work felt like a challenge in itself. “Most days, I carried the full weight of both,” she wrote.
Continuing to work gave Wiles a sense of purpose beyond medical appointments, scans and the side effects of cancer treatment.
“Cancer can make your world very small,” Wiles wrote. She said she made a deliberate effort to stay focused on the people who relied on her, even while recognizing that some might wonder whether she was still able to lead effectively.
Treatment affected her stamina, mobility and, at times, her concentration. Wiles said she was not always able to be everywhere she wanted to be. Colleagues inside and outside the White House helped fill the gaps, while her two daughters, extended family, friends and medical team supported her throughout the illness.
Wiles stressed that working during cancer treatment is neither appropriate nor possible for everyone. In her case, she wrote, the job helped her maintain a sense of identity beyond the disease.
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Following successful surgery, pathology results showed no residual cancer, Wiles wrote. She said she is now focused on rebuilding the strength and abilities that treatment took from her.
“Chemotherapy is, in a word, a b—-,” she wrote.
In a post on X Sunday, Wiles said she rarely discusses her personal life but wanted to describe what it meant to fight cancer while continuing to do a job she loves.
“Cancer tried to make my world smaller. I was determined not to let it,” she wrote, adding that she hoped her experience would provide strength to others still battling the disease.
Wiles announced Sept. 16 that she was cancer-free after receiving clear pathology results following an appointment at the Mayo Clinic. She first disclosed her early-stage breast cancer diagnosis in March.
Trump praised Wiles during her treatment. In a prerecorded tribute in May, he said she was winning her fight against cancer. Wiles thanked him for his kindness and compassion, and credited her family, friends, colleagues and doctors with helping her endure the ordeal.
Wiles also shared a message of hope for people undergoing cancer treatment.
“Cancer does not have to take away who you are,” she wrote. For Wiles, life beyond the disease includes serving Trump and the country, as well as being a mother, grandmother and friend.
One of her daughters, Katie Wiles, responded to her mother’s message on X. “A strong woman isn’t loud in her strength; she’s steady and unshakable,” she wrote. “You are our champion. So incredibly proud of you, Mom.”