What Happened to Desi Arnaz Jr. After He Put His Acting Career on Hold?

The father-daughter pair’s relationship seemed to get better over the years, and by 2021, Julia revealed how he helped her a lot throughout her life. The then-25-year-old also noted how her father assisted her daughter, Desiree S. Anzalone, through college. The star’s granddaughter sadly died in recent years.

Losing His Granddaughter

Desi Jr. built a relationship with his granddaughter before she died on September 27, 2020, from stage 4 breast cancer. The 31-year-old lost her battle with the disease at Connecticut’s Smilow Cancer Center. She was born on September 15, 1989, to Julia and Mario Anzalone.

Desiree was Desi Sr. and Lucille’s first great-grandchild. Her mother said she died “peacefully” but confessed that watching Desiree “slip away” isn’t something she’d wish on her worst enemy. Julia feels it’s something no mother should have to witness.

She described her late daughter as “special” and “something else.” They were and still are best friends with her “mini-me.” Julia recalled how beautiful Desiree was inside and out and reminded her of her grandmother.

Desi Jr.’s grandchild was 25 when she was first diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. She got chemotherapy but eventually decided on a double mastectomy. Desiree went into remission for some time, but in 2018, she discovered the cancer had returned.

It came back as stage 4 and spread to her lungs, liver, and bones. Julia figures her daughter could’ve been with them for a few more years, but the cancer had started spreading, and the tumors were bigger. Desiree’s family had expected her to, at least, survive through the holidays.

What went wrong with Desi Jr.’s granddaughter was that fluid kept building up around her heart. Surgeries got done, but the issue would return within two weeks. When Desiree died, she’d gone into surgery and returned 12 hours later.

They then told Julia she only had days or hours with her daughter, and that was “really tough” for her. Julia was there before the loss happened, which she described as “unimaginable.” Before her death, the photographer received hormonal chemotherapy.