Serena Williams, a champion with 23 Grand Slam singles titles, announced on Wednesday that she successfully had a grapefruit-sized cyst excised from her neck and is currently recovering well. 

The 43-year-old former world number one in women's tennis shared in a TikTok video that she discovered a lump on the right side of her neck in May, and an MRI revealed the presence of a brachial cyst.

“I am still recovering, but getting better. Health always comes first,” Williams posted on X.

Williams delayed the removal of the cyst until it increased in size. After undergoing several tests and a biopsy, she ultimately had surgery to excise it.

“I found this big mass on my neck. I was mortified by it,” she said in the video. “I got tests done. Everything you could imagine. Everything was negative. Turns out I had what they call a cyst, a brachial cyst to be exact.

“So I ended up having to get it removed. It was so big. It was the size of a grapefruit and it kind of hurt coming out.”

“They had to put a drain in it because it was so much but everything worked out and I feel really happy to have worked with some great doctors.

“A little scared here but excited to move on to the next steps of healing and getting well.”

The conclusion of her video featured Williams alongside her daughter Olympia, enjoying a long-awaited shopping excursion following the surgery.

“I’m feeling so grateful and fortunate everything worked out and most of all I’m healthy,” Williams wrote in a caption to the video. “I still made it to American doll with Olympia as promised.

“And yes all is ok.”

Serena achieved an impressive total of 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the highest number recorded by a woman in the professional era of the sport. Additionally, she secured 14 Grand Slam doubles titles alongside her older sister, Venus. Throughout her career, Serena maintained her position at the top of the WTA rankings for over 300 weeks and earned four Olympic gold medals.

Williams secured her inaugural Grand Slam title at the 1999 US Open and her final one at the 2017 Australian Open. Throughout her illustrious career, she claimed seven titles each at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, six at the US Open, and three at the French Open before retiring following the 2022 US Open.