Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of John F. Kennedy and environmental journalist, died Tuesday morning at age 35 following a battle with acute myeloid leukemia. The JFK Library Foundation announced her passing in a statement released Tuesday, December 30, 2025.
“Our beautiful Tatiana passed away this morning. She will always be in our hearts,” the foundation said on behalf of her family.
Schlossberg was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in May 2024, shortly after giving birth to her second child. Medical tests revealed a rare mutation of the disease, and she was given a prognosis of one year to live. She underwent chemotherapy and bone marrow transplants as part of her treatment regimen. Her sister donated stem cells for the transplants. Schlossberg also participated in a clinical trial for immunotherapy in an effort to combat the aggressive blood cancer.
The daughter of Caroline Kennedy, age 67, and Edwin Schlossberg revealed her terminal diagnosis in an essay published in The New Yorker in November 2024. In the deeply personal piece, she wrote about confronting her mortality and the impact on her young children.
“During the latest clinical trial, my doctor told me that he could keep me alive for a year, maybe. My first thought was that my kids, whose faces live permanently on the inside of my eyelids, wouldn’t remember me,” she wrote in the essay.
Schlossberg detailed the emotional struggle of missing critical moments with her daughter. She wrote that she could not change her daughter’s diaper, give her a bath or feed her because of infection risks following her transplants. She was absent for nearly half of her daughter’s first year of life. Her son was born in 2022. In total, she leaves behind two children.
The journalist reflected on trying to create lasting memories with her family despite her limited time. She described how memories from her own childhood would surface as she watched her children grow. She wrote about attempting to stay present with them, though acknowledged the difficulty of doing so. She concluded her essay by expressing her determination to keep trying to remember her time with her children, even knowing she would not be able to recall those moments after death.
Schlossberg married George Moran in September 2017. The couple met as undergraduates at Yale University and held their wedding ceremony at her family’s home on Martha’s Vineyard.
Before her illness, Schlossberg established herself as an environmental journalist and author. She worked as a climate reporter for the New York Times and wrote the book “Inconspicuous Consumption,” published in 2019. Her career focused on environmental issues and climate change, areas she remained passionate about even during her treatment.
In her November 2024 essay, Schlossberg criticized the health policies of her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who had been appointed to a government position overseeing health matters. She wrote about learning that one of her chemotherapy drugs, cytarabine, was derived from a Caribbean Sea sponge. She noted that the drug’s development relied on government funding.
Schlossberg expressed concern about cuts to medical research funding and their impact on patients like herself. She noted that doctors at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving medical center, where she received treatment, faced uncertainty about their future following funding reductions.
Her essay appeared decades after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963. She wrote about the weight of adding another tragedy to her family’s history and her lifelong effort to protect her mother from upset. She described her struggle with being unable to prevent the pain her illness would cause her family.
Schlossberg is survived by her husband George Moran, their son and daughter, her parents Caroline Kennedy and Edwin Schlossberg, and her siblings Rose Schlossberg and Jack Schlossberg.
The environmental journalist’s death comes after months of intensive medical treatment at Columbia University’s medical facilities. Despite the aggressive treatment protocols, including multiple bone marrow transplants and participation in cutting-edge clinical trials, the rare mutation of acute myeloid leukemia continued to progress. Her willingness to share her journey publicly in The New Yorker brought attention to both the personal toll of terminal illness and broader questions about medical research funding.
Schlossberg’s work as a former New York Times climate reporter and her book on environmental consumption left a mark on environmental journalism. Her ability to explain complex environmental issues to general audiences earned recognition in the field. The publication of “Inconspicuous Consumption” in 2019 examined the hidden environmental costs of everyday choices, reflecting her commitment to making climate science accessible.
The JFK Library Foundation serves as the official presidential library and museum for President Kennedy. The foundation preserves the legacy of the 35th president and promotes public service and civic engagement. Its announcement of Schlossberg’s death marked the loss of another member of the Kennedy family, whose history has been marked by both public service and personal tragedy over multiple generations.
Sources:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/tatiana-schlossberg-granddaughter-jfk-died/story?id=128788014
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tatiana-schlossberg-dies-terminal-cancer/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/30/tatiana-schlossberg-jfk-dies
https://variety.com/2025/politics/news/tatiana-schlossberg-dead-jfk-granddaughter-blood-cancer-1236620495/
https://www.wcvb.com/article/tatiana-schlossberg-dies-jfk-granddaughter/69888702
https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/tatiana-schlossberg-jfks-granddaughter-dies-35/HSJ75OVKFZCD3ASXVDTZK3W5XY/