Grey’s Anatomy: Izzie Has Cancer For Sure

Let the record show that when cornered, Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice boss Shonda Rhimes will outwit you, even if she has to stretch the truth a little.

Last summer, after tabloid reports surfaced that Izzie Stevens would have a brain tumor this season on Grey’s Anatomy, we asked Shonda about the stories and she told us, point-blank “no”—there was no truth the stories.

Nine months later, after viewers rejected the season’s major dead Denny plotline as patent nonsense—a situation that might have redeemed itself if those viewers had confirmation that he was a tumor-induced hallucination—Justin Chambers has confirmed that, duh, Izzie has a cancer.

What exactly did he say and when will we see the news onscreen?

According to TV Guide Canada, Justin Chambers (who plays Izzie’s boyfriend and fellow doctor Alex Karev) said, “Izzie has cancer, so I’m there to support her…I would expect Alex to shut down a little bit if something awful happens to Izzie, but these are opportunities to see his chivalrous side and his true love for her, so there should be some interesting stuff coming up.” (Whoo, Izzie-Alex romance!)

And yes, in next Thursday’s all-new episodes of the ABC drama, Izzie’s flock of interns will finally nail down her illness, although as far as they know, they’re only diagnosing “patient X.”