Amy Schumer reveals she has Cushing syndrome, hormonal disorder that can cause 'moon face'

LOS ANGELES -- Comedian and actor Amy Schumer is sharing more about a current health challenge she's dealing with.

After Schumer was a guest earlier this month on "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," where she discussed the second season of her Hulu hit "Life & Beth," some on social media critically commented that her appearance had changed. Schumer responded to the comments in a scathing Instagram post by explaining there were some "medical and hormonal things going on in my world right now but I'm okay."

In an interview published Friday on Jessica Yellen's News Not Noise newsletter, Schumer revealed she has exogenous Cushing syndrome, brought on by getting steroid injections that resulted in excess cortisol in her body. According to the Mayo Clinic, the condition can lead to weight gain, fatigue, "moon face," headaches and other symptoms.

Schumer said she felt "reborn" learning her diagnosis, following an uncertain series of tests to determine what was going on.

"While I was doing press on camera for my Hulu show, I was also in MRI machines four hours at a time, having my veins shut down from the amount of blood drawn and thinking I may not be around to see my son grow up," Schumer recalled. "So finding out I have the kind of Cushing that will just work itself out and I'm healthy was the greatest news imaginable. It has been a crazy couple weeks for me and my family."

Schumer said she felt motivated to share her diagnosis to advocate for women's health and body positivity.

"The shaming and criticism of our ever-changing bodies is something I have dealt with and witnessed for a long time," Schumer explained. "I want so much for women to love themselves and be relentless when fighting for their own health in a system that usually doesn't believe them."

Schumer concluded her conversation by encouraging others to be kinder with their words.

"This is a good example of the fact that we never know what is going on with someone," she said. "Everyone is struggling with something. Maybe we can all be a little kinder to each other and ourselves."

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