Trish Stratus recalls her emotional state when her mother was diagnosed with cancer

WWE Superstar Trish Stratus lost her mother in August this year. Alice Stratigeas was diagnosed with cancer and was fighting a battle with the deadly disease after beating it once, almost two decades ago. Now, the Canadian wrestler has opened up about what was going on when her mother received her diagnosis once again.

Trish Stratus spoke on the matter with Bill Apter on 1WrestlingVideo. She explained that it is a whole process: getting different medical tests done, seeing different specialists, receiving the diagnosis, and then seeking further treatment from specialists.

The Hall of Famer mentioned that she had to go through all of this while holding her breath, unsure of what would come next.

“I don't know if you've been through cancer or people with cancer. It's a process. You get this terrible news, and then you spend a month of, like, seeing specialists and doctors. So you're in this, like, holding your breath phase for, like, a month, where you're doing all these tests. To then get the final, okay, this is what it is, and then you go see all these doctors for another month, to be like, and this is what we can do about it. It's quite the process, obviously, in Canada, we have different healthcare systems than what you guys have, but I'm sure it's all about the same,” she said.

Trish Stratus said that her mother got the cancer diagnosis in March 2025 and passed away after a five-month battle. The WWE legend highlighted that her mother was her best friend and also like a second mother to her kids.

---

Trish Stratus reveals a key reason for her retirement in 2006

Speaking in the same interview, Trish Stratus said that the last time she retired from pro wrestling in 2006, one of the reasons was her mother’s battle with cancer. She noticed it was affecting her career, and she was declining to go on tours far away from North America.

“Ironically, my mom got diagnosed with cancer back when I retired in 2006, which she beat. She fought that, and she had Hodgkin's lymphoma, and I remember that's one of the reasons I actually did retire, because I knew I needed to step away, because I wanted to be with her during treatment,” she said.

This time, Stratus didn’t quit wrestling. Instead, she fought for the WWE Women’s Championship against Tiffany Stratton at Evolution on July 13, 2025. The Canadian wrestler said she was happy that her mother got to see her in the ring one more time before she passed away a month later.

---

If you use quotes from this article, please credit 1WrestlingVideo and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.