Beth Chapman undergoes emergency surgery in Los Angeles
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Beth Chapman, left, and Duane Chapman arrive at the CMT Music Awards at Bridgestone Arena, in Nashville, Tenn., in 2014.
Bounty hunter Beth Chapman — the matriarch of the family featured in the Hawaii-based television reality show “Dog the Bounty Hunter” — was rushed into emergency throat surgery in Los Angeles this morning, multiple media outlets reported.
Chapman, 51, had been diagnosed with stage II throat cancer in September 2017 and was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Monday night to clear a throat blockage that obstructed her airways, People reported.
In a letter to friends revealing her cancer diagnosis, Chapman wrote:
“As most of you know, I’ve spent a lifetime facing tests and challenges I didn’t see coming and certainly never expected,” she began in the note, which was obtained by RadarOnline. “I’ve been dealt my share of unexpected blows over the course of my almost 50 years but nothing as serious as the one I heard from my doctors two weeks ago when they uttered those dreaded three words, ‘You have cancer.’
“After months of a nagging cough, a routine checkup resulted in a diagnosis of stage II throat cancer,” she wrote. “I have what is referred to as a T2 Tumor in my throat that is blocking my breathing. My doctors are suggesting immediate treatment and surgery before the disease progresses.”
After Chapman’s cancer diagnosis, Duane Chapman said in November 2017 that she was cancer free. The diagnosis was featured during a two-hour special called “Dog & Beth: Fight of Their Lives.”
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Chapman, her husband, Duane “Dog” Chapman, and their bounty-hunting children chased bail jumpers across the islands out of their Da Kine Bail Bonds storefront on Queen Emma Street from 2001 to 2012.
Dog the Bounty Hunter led to a scaled-down spin off with their son, Leland, called “Dog and Beth: On the Hunt” that aired for three seasons until 2015. That show took the trio across the mainland to help local bounty hunters.
Beth Chapman then served as president of the Professional Bail Agents of the United States.
She was born on Oct. 29, 1967, in Denver Colorado, according to the Dog the Bounty Hunter website.
She was the youngest person to get a bail license in Colorado — a milestone that was later beaten by Chapman’s daughter, Baby Lyssa, according to the website, which said Beth lives in both Hawaii and Colorado.
