JFK’s Granddaughter Tatiana Schlossberg Dies at 35 After Battle With Cancer

Tatiana Schlossberg, the granddaughter of former U.S. president John F. Kennedy, has died at the age of 35, her family confirmed on Tuesday.

In a statement shared via the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Instagram account, the family said Schlossberg passed away on Tuesday morning local time.

“Our beautiful Tatiana passed away this morning. She will always be in our hearts,” the family wrote.

Schlossberg was the second child of JFK’s daughter Caroline Kennedy and designer-artist Edwin Schlossberg. She was known as a climate change activist and environmental journalist.

In a deeply personal essay published in The New Yorker in November, Schlossberg revealed she had been diagnosed with a rare and terminal form of leukaemia. She wrote that doctors discovered the illness in May 2024, when she was 34, after noticing an unusually high white blood cell count following the birth of her second child.

She said the diagnosis was acute myeloid leukaemia with a rare mutation more commonly found in older patients. The essay was published on the 62nd anniversary of her grandfather’s assassination.

In the same piece, Schlossberg sharply criticised her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr., warning that his health policies could harm cancer patients. She cited cuts to research funding for mRNA vaccines, saying the technology could play a role in treating certain cancers.

Her mother, Caroline Kennedy, had earlier urged U.S. senators to oppose Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation as health secretary.

Schlossberg’s death has prompted an outpouring of grief, with many remembering her for her advocacy, writing, and courage in publicly sharing her battle with illness.

— Reuters / AP