Ellen Degeneres broke down in tears as she mourned her 19-year-old ‘boyfriend’ in a heartbreaking clip.
The celebrity TV host released an emotional statement this weekend (September 27) mourning the loss of her ‘boyfriend,’ 19-year-old Tayt Andersen.
The teenager, who was suffering with cancer, was a former guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and his family announced the sad news last week.
In a statement, his mom Chrissy Becker, said: “Our hearts are absolutely shattered as we share the news we never wanted to write: Our sweet, strong warrior, Tayt, was released from his bodily prison early this morning, at 1:30 a.m. CT, surrounded by the fierce love of his family.
“While our souls feel shattered and lost by this unimaginable grief, we are so thankful that Tayt is finally free.”
They added: “No more pain, no more appointments, no more treatments.”
Ellen described him as a ‘special human being’ in her emotional video, noting that she will ‘miss him’ greatly.
The 67-year-old said: “He just brought joy and life and laughter into every room that he was in.
“You touched so many lives.”
Tayt had been born with only half of a heart, and he went through more than 10 surgeries by the age of nine.
Despite receiving a heart transplant at 10 years old, he was then diagnosed with post-transplant lymphoma a few years later.
In 2024, when he was just 18, he was diagnosed with bladder cancer that eventually spread to his pelvis, spine, abdomen, chest and neck.
Earlier this year, he was given only three to four months to live.
Ellen added: “He thought that I was his girlfriend, and so I told him he was my boyfriend, which shocked my wife.
“But he was a very special little human being.”
In the comments of her post, heartbroken mom Chrissy replied: “Thank you for being his girlfriend you gave him so much strength.”
His family added: “We knew Tayt’s time was limited but we honestly just weren’t ready to lose him.
“There are truly no words to describe this pain; we are just moving through this painful process, grateful for every moment we had with our amazing boy.”
Tayt first made an appearance on Ellen’s show in 2013.
“I love you,” he told her during a video call at the time.
His family noted that the teenager’s condition ‘took a turn for the worst’ last week, but that he passed away ‘peacefully.’
