Kim Kardashian Hospitalized for Condition Tied to Her Father's Death
Kim Kardashian is dealing with a health scare that hits unusually close to home.
In the season eight trailer for The Kardashians, released September 17 on Hulu, the 45-year-old revealed she's been diagnosed with esophagitis — an inflammation of the esophagus — and was hospitalized for it. The trailer shows her in a hospital gown, emotional, being prepared for what appears to be a procedure.
"I have something called esophagitis," she says in the clip, getting her hair and makeup done.
Off camera, a producer asks the question that's clearly already on everyone's mind: "Your father… isn't that what he died of?"
Kim replies simply: "Yeah."
The camera cuts to her mother Kris Jenner. "I can't," Kris says. "It makes me want to cry."
Robert Kardashian died of esophageal cancer on September 30, 2003, at just 59 years old — just two months after his diagnosis in July of that year. The speed of it was devastating. Kim was 23. Khloé was 19. Rob was 16.
Esophagitis and Esophageal Cancer Are Not the Same Thing
The important distinction the trailer doesn't make explicitly — and that doctors want people to understand — is that esophagitis and esophageal cancer are two very different conditions.
Esophagitis is inflammation of the lining of the esophagus, the muscular tube that moves food and liquid from the throat to the stomach. It's actually quite common. Chronic esophagitis is most often caused by acid reflux, where stomach acid repeatedly irritates the esophageal lining. Other causes include certain medications, allergies, and infections. According to the University of Washington's Division of Gastroenterology, chronic esophagitis is a "very common condition" — not a rare or inherently serious diagnosis on its own.
Where it becomes more concerning is if it goes untreated over time. Persistent esophagitis caused by acid reflux can eventually lead to a condition called Barrett's esophagus, in which the normal lining of the esophagus is replaced by tissue prone to becoming cancerous. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, about 1 in 10 reflux patients develops Barrett's esophagus. And Barrett's esophagus — not esophagitis itself — is what meaningfully raises the risk of esophageal cancer.
Kim's specific diagnosis, its severity, and what procedure she underwent are not disclosed in the trailer. The new season premieres October 8 on Hulu.
The Family's Connection to Esophageal Health
The Kardashian family has spent two decades turning their father's death into advocacy. In 2019, Kim and several family members attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Robert G. Kardashian Center for Esophageal Health at UCLA — a research and treatment center dedicated specifically to esophageal disorders.
"My wish is that other families can have more information and we can also focus on health and prevention," Kim wrote when the center opened.
By 2024 she had seen the center's work bear real fruit. "I have friends that I have referred to the Robert G. Kardashian Center, and it has saved their lives," she said at the center's fifth anniversary event. "It makes me proud to hear them be so grateful that they found a place dedicated to the one thing that would help them."
Now the thing the center was built around has arrived in her own body. The trailer doesn't tell us how serious Kim's situation is — but her sitting in a hospital gown and saying "yeah" to that question makes clear the emotional weight of it.
This is the second significant health revelation Kim has made on the show. Last season in 2025, she revealed doctors had discovered a small aneurysm in her brain during an MRI, along with signs that the front part of her brain was less active than it should be — both attributed to stress.
The Kardashians Season 8 premieres October 8 on Hulu.
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