Sandra Lee shared the moment she realized her relationship with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was finished.
Lee and Cuomo were together for 14 years without marrying. They ended their relationship in 2019, four years after the celebrity chef’s breast cancer diagnosis.
“I was in my kitchen when he said something, and the instant he did, I understood what he meant. It felt like every window and door closed. That was the end,” Lee recounted to US Weekly.
However, Lee opted not to disclose the specifics of the remark made in the spring of 2019.
FOOD NETWORK STAR SANDRA LEE WAS ‘AS SICK AS CAN BE’ AFTER TRYING WEIGHT-LOSS MEDICATION
Andrew Cuomo and Sandra Lee parted ways in 2019 after 14 years together. (Getty Images)
“He knows what it is. I know what it is,” she said.
At the time of their breakup, Lee and Cuomo were spending less time together and leading “separate” lives.
Lee didn’t go into detail regarding their split, preferring to keep the specifics private.
“When you lead separate lives, you aren’t building a life together,” she stated to the outlet.
Sandra Lee stated that Andrew Cuomo was increasingly absent as their relationship neared its end. (Getty Images)
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“I was in my kitchen, and he said something. And the minute he said it, I knew what he’d just said. And every window and door closed. And that was it.”
Lee also accused Cuomo of being unavailable during her cancer treatment. The “Semi-Homemade Cooking with Sandra Lee” host was diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in 2015. She underwent a double mastectomy and eventually a complete hysterectomy.
“Cancer can be aggressive and deceptive, often lying in wait,” Lee told US Weekly. “I had to confront it head-on for a year.”
She recounted spending her birthday alone amid treatment.
Andrew Cuomo and Sandra Lee first met at a party in the Hamptons in 2005. (Getty Images)
“I spent my birthday alone, sitting on my lawn,” Lee reminisced. “That day meant a lot to me, particularly considering everything. Though I’m not one to wallow in self-pity, that day was exceptionally tough.”
Lee did mention that she and Cuomo went out for dinner later.
Cuomo stated that he had cleared his schedule to celebrate with Lee on her special day.
Rich Azzopardi, Cuomo’s spokesperson, countered Lee’s narrative, asserting that it does not align with past accounts.
“Her current version contradicts statements she made in her own documentary released in 2018—three years post-surgery. This story was clearly planted in Page Six about how she celebrated her birthday after her operation (during which the governor rearranged his schedule to be with her), and her comments in 2016 praising him for his unwavering support throughout her cancer recovery, as well as her comments after their relationship ended and during COVID when Sandra declared he was still ‘her guy’ and that they ‘spoke every day,'” Azzopardi told Fox News Digital.
“We wish her all the best in her future endeavors.”
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Sandra Lee expressed her feelings about her breakup from former Governor Andrew Cuomo in a recent interview. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
In the midst of the distressing media attention surrounding her public split from Cuomo, Lee learned of her uncle’s terminal illness.
She chose to care for the uncle she regarded as a father figure until his passing in 2023, which she described as the “lowest point” of her life.
“I went into the bathroom and started to vomit,” Lee disclosed. “That was my body’s way of releasing five years of pent-up emotion. Honestly, that had to be the lowest point of my life—leaning over a toilet, overwhelmed by sadness and grief.”
Sandra Lee asserts that the “lowest point” in her life was experienced after her uncle’s death. (Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic)
Reflecting on the past decade, Lee feels she has become “wiser and stronger.”
“I’ve accepted that I will never fully overcome the heartbreak caused by the past ten years,” she remarked. “The grief has been ceaseless, yet I intend to use it as motivation to grow and become wiser and stronger.
“I can honestly say this has been the most difficult decade of my life.”
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