Michael Strahan couldn’t quite come to grips with his daughter Isabella’s cancer diagnosis at first. “This must be a mistake.’ It didn’t seem real,” Strahan recalled in the trailer of his daughter’s ABC documentary, “Life Interrupted”. The documentary charters Isabella’s journey from undergoing brain surgery after being diagnosed with medulloblastoma on her 19th birthday to ringing the bell, as is tradition at the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center after being declared cancer-free in July last year.

It was Strahan’s other daughter, Sophia, whom Isabella first confided in about experiencing nausea and headaches. Sophia quickly broke the news of her twin sister’s condition to their parents, who took immediate action. After taking her to the ER, the doctors found that she had a fast-growing tumor in her cerebellum. “They said no need for a second opinion. We should just go in,” he mentioned and the next day Isabella had surgery to remove the tumor. What followed was a battling time consisting of radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and two more surgeries.

The surgeries were needed to clean out an infection around the surgical site and replace part of her skull with a titanium mesh plate. “That was the first time I saw her cry,” her father recalled. But putting all that behind her, Isabella has fought back valiantly to be cancer-free and begin her life anew. Yet, for her father concerns remain.

Isabella is obviously cancer-free. But the possibility of cancer returning is still there, as per Dr. David Ashley. Ashley, who is a director of the brain tumor center at Duke University, sent a warning about Isabella’s road to complete recovery, “You know, the next couple of years. We’ll be in an anxious period every time we do scans for her and her family in medical circles, as we call it scans or ID.”

Appearing in part 2 of Isabella’s Life Interrupted, an ABC documentary, Michael Strahan spoke about how this part still scares him about Isabella’s recovery. “There will not be a time where she’s getting a scan where I won’t be on pins and needles. I don’t care if it’s 10 years, 20 years, 30 years from now. You’ll always be nervous. And I could tell she feels it too.” 

The next couple of years will be crucial for Isabella while she undergoes scans. Even though she is back at USC studying communications, she must continue to monitor her health closely with regular check-ups. The doctors have expressed optimism about Isabella staying healthy, but as any parent would Strahan remains concerned and is braced for any challenge.

Talking to PEOPLE last month, Strahan said, “Her doctors feel very confident, she’s going to be fine. That’s what we’re going to hold on to, but you’re nervous every time. That will never go away but as long as the results come back positive, then we’ll live to fight another day.”

For Strahan seeing his daughter go through this hard ordeal wasn’t easy and that is why perhaps he is not taking anything for granted. Enduring three surgeries and four rounds of chemotherapy took its toll on Isabella and it was hard for her family and her father was struggling to find solace.

Michael Strahan recalled those tough days in the documentary. “She wasn’t eating much. She was thin and tired and bald and all the things you hate to see your kid go through.” Isabella documented her battle with cancer in a series of YouTube vlogs and last year in February revealed how she was struggling with pain after chemo.

“My head hurts. I feel like I’m having a heart attack. My heart hurts. My whole mouth feels like I got one giant root canal. Every single tooth just ripped out and not even surgically put back in. My jaw hurts, the bottom of my tongue hurts. It hurts when I gulp water,” she said in the vlog.

Throughout her battle, her family remained by her side. Her sister Sophia, tried to bring a sense of normalcy in her life by treating her like a typical young adult. She shared with Isabella the latest gossip going on with their friends or told her about what was making the news. As for her mother, Jean, she would sleep in the hospital with her.

As Isabella fought on, her father realized how strong her daughter was. “She wasn’t eating much. She was thin and tired and bald and all the things you hate to see your kid go through. I don’t know how she did it. I was struggling myself with it. I always say that she is a lot stronger than I am.”

In that small clip from her Life Interrupted documentary, Isabella was seen ringing the bell at the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center as she made her way through a round of applause and confetti to ring the bell, thereby announcing herself as cancer-free. However, as her doctor and Strahan said before, there is reason to remain cautious.

Isabella reiterated that notion in the documentary saying, “I think people sometimes confuse ringing the bell with like being cancer-free. Sometimes, it’s not the case for everyone.” 

So, that tinch of nervousness still lies somewhere deep in the hearts of the Strahans. That being said, Isabella isn’t someone who is ready to let that nervousness keep her down. Instead, she continues to live her life to the fullest by trying to roll back her years.

Isabella Strahan slowly tries to get her normal life back

“It feels like I’m starting over. Back to where I started.” Those were Isabella’s words as she went back to the University of Southern California to resume her studies. She is slowly trying to get her life back to normal and was seen over the holidays vacationing in the Caribbean with her sister Sophia and shared pictures on social media celebrating her return to health from the Bahamas.

Sophia and Isabella even embarked on a trip to Disneyland, to celebrate their 20th birthday. While she understands that she has to be monitored and get regular checkups, refuses to live in fear.

“Obviously, you can’t predict what can happen, and that is a little scary. But I don’t think you can solely live in fear. I think I should live every day. Take every opportunity, she told PEOPLE.

Many people got to witness Isabella’s fight against cancer through her vlogs and social media updates, and right now she serves as an inspiration for those going through this unimaginable pain. As she looks to embrace the positive side of life, we wish her a healthy journey ahead.