The Stunning Transformation Of Giuliana Rancic

Giuliana Rancic. When that names pops up, my mind immediately goes to the red carpet, award shows, and a gut instinct that any event she hosts will be very entertaining. Rancic has become a staple in the entertainment industry, and it's difficult to picture a big Hollywood event without her presence.

An Italian immigrant, this host-with-the-most has worked hard to reach her level of success, and has seemed to stay grounded throughout it all. She's been open about her struggles in addition to her successes, and has stayed strong through it all. So let's take a look back at this fabulous woman and her stunning transformation.

From Italy, and originally Giuliana DePandi, Rancic moved to the States when she was in elementary school. As she discussed with The Washington Post, she was quieter as a child. She experienced a tough time with the differences in language as she did not speak English when she moved to Maryland as a kid.

So how did she learn a brand new language? She watched the news. As her dad, Eduardo DePandi, described to the Post, "Other children watched the cartoons or whatever...[Giuliana] watched the news." Even then, Rancic seemed to be plotting her future career moves.

From a young age, Rancic apired to enter the modeling world. As she described her in book, Going Off Script (via E! Online) once she discovered an ad for the Barbizon School of Modeling and knew she had to be a part of it. She said, "I begged my parents to enroll me...One brief interview and twelve hundred dollars of my parents' hard-earned cash later, I was in! The weekly classes were the highlight of my week."

But even though it was what she wanted, Rancic was an insecure teen. When asked by Seventeen Magazine what she would tell her 17-year-old self, she said, "I was pretty hard on myself appearance-wise, too. I never thought I was pretty enough. I was kind of tall and lanky. I don't mind it now, but back in the day I hated it. I would tell myself that what I think is ugly at 17 is actually what's going to be pretty about me later. You don't have to be the prettiest to become the best, and what I don't like about myself now is what's actually going to set me apart from everyone later and help me land my dream job!"

After earning her undergraduate degree in journalism, Rancic knew she wasn't done with school. As The Washington Post described, her family thought she would marry her boyfriend at the time and work at the family business after school, but Rancic had other plans.

She was accepted into American University, where she studied broadcast journalism. She described the experience to the Chicago Tribune, saying, "As for graduate school, American University has a terrific program that allows students to experience reporting in the nation's capital. Each day, we would choose a different beat to cover: the Supreme Court, the Pentagon, the White House, the State Department, or Capitol Hill," she said. "We had incredible access. I wouldn't have been able to get that kind of experience at many other schools. Being part of that program gave me a solid foundation and truly shaped me as a journalist."

But as the program was finishing up, the dean of students for her program spoke with Rancic about her future plans. As Rancic described to The Washington Post, he suggested she leave behind the Washington D.C. writing, and go to Hollywood. She told the Post, "I had a whole plan...And when he told me you should probably be intro-ing music videos or, you know, trying to get an interview with a celebrity like John Stamos, I'm thinking, What? Are you kidding me right now? I was a bit insulted."

Just a couple years after graduating, 26-year-old Rancic had her first big opportunity with E! In 2001. As The Washington Post reported, she had to do a test interview for a permanent job at the network. While interviewing Wilmer Valderrama at a movie premiere, they had a discussion about dating older women. Rancic included this in her piece.

As she told the Post, she was fired in no time. Then, just a couple of months later, she was rehired by the network when they saw the amount of feedback Rancic's interview with Valderrama received. As Rancic described, "It was my worst gig for E! and my best gig for E!, you know what I mean?...Because it got me fired, and then it got me hired."

After a highly publicized relationship that didn't work out, Rancic met a very important man in her life — but it wasn't fireworks from the start. As E! News reported, Rancic-to-be met Bill Rancic at an NBC upfront party. Then a year later, after he won The Apprentice, Rancic interviewed him, but both of them were in relationships. Another interview came up in 2004 when both were single, and the rest is history.

The two got engaged in 2006 and the then 31-year-old Rancic described the big moment (via E! News), saying, "At first, I thought Bill was surprising me with a helicopter ride over downtown Chicago to see the Christmas lights. Then, suddenly he pulled out the most beautiful ring I have ever seen and asked me to marry him. I was so excited I could barely speak...When we got back to his house, he had roses and rose petals scattered everywhere and a big chocolate cake sitting next to a bottle of our favorite wine. It was the best night of my life." The two wed in 2007 in Italy.

In 2011, 37-year-old Rancic received tragic news in the midst of a busy career: she was diagnosed with breast cancer. As Rancic described on her and her husband's show Giuliana and Bill (via People) at the time, "The second I heard the 'cancer,' I just remember my head went down, the ground went away and I just dropped through the earth, and I was just dropping, falling...It's not easy talking about it because it's like the worst second of your life. It's just awful...Everything you expect that conversation is going to be like — it's a hundred times worse, maybe a million times worse, because those are the words you never want to hear."

In December, the E! host underwent a double mastectomy, and today is cancer free. In 2016, Rancic posted on Instagram, sharing that she was 5 years cancer-free. In her post, she said, "Breast cancer is more of my history, less of my present, but that doesn't mean I am leaving this battlefield...Through my journey, I have met those who, it breaks my heart to say, did not reach this milestone. This past year alone, more than 40,000 people died of breast cancer, while another 300,000 received the devastating diagnosis and began their own journeys through the storm. And I pray for them all...I can now declare, with immense gratitude and God's love, that I can feel the sun shining on my face. And I can also say that I'm finally...OK."

In 2012, Rancic and her husband had big news to share with the world: they were expecting their first child. The two had been open about their struggles with conceiving, and were excited to share the announcement. The 37-year-old told E! News, "We are so thrilled that our prayers have been answered." The couple then went on the Today show and talked more about their excitement (via E! News). Rancic said, "It was one of the best moments of my life, if not the best moment of my life...It's incredible. We've been trying for so long, we've been through so much...And to finally get that call from the doctor, it was just another world, another level."

Just months later, their son, Edward Duke Rancic, was born via surrogate on August 29, 2012. At the time Rancic shared with E! News, "Bill and I are blessed beyond words to welcome Edward into our lives...Thank you so much to everyone who supported us along the way. We are so in love with the little guy already!"

In 2015 Rancic ran into hot water after controversial comments she made on an episode of E!'s Fashion Police about young actress Zendaya. After the episode aired, Zendaya put out a statement, which shocked Rancic. The host spoke with E! News after the event, saying, "I read [Zendaya's] statement and I was shocked...I made [the joke] as a reference to the hippie culture. It was a bohemian-chic reference, not about race, nor would it ever be. It was horrifying to have my name in a headline with words I have never been associated with in my life...There were about 50 sets of eyeballs on set that day...And not one person thought that it had the undertones that it ended up having once it aired because they heard it in context."

With all of the negative comments and media thunderstorm, Rancic learned a lesson she keeps with her. She continued on to say, "It was a very unfortunate incident...I'm so regretful that people interpreted the joke [as they did]. I hurt people and I feel terrible about that. And I learned a really important lesson that if people are offended, it doesn't matter the intent."

Rancic continued to deal with controversy in 2015 when it came to comments about her weight. After being on E! News for Golden Globes coverage, the internet started talking about her weight and gossiping about whether she had an eating disorder, or if this could be cancer again. Rancic spoke to People about the comments, saying, "I thought to myself, 'God, if someone really thought I had an eating disorder, what a horrible way to approach it." The truth, Rancic shared, was that the cancer-suppressing medication she was taking had a possible effect of weight loss. She shared, "It's really hurtful...I'm sorry that some people think I'm disgustingly skinny, as they put it, but there's nothing I can do. I'm lucky that I even have the type of cancer that reacts to the medicine."

She'll be the first to admit she's self-conscious, saying, "I look in the mirror and it's hard for me...I am really thin. I want to look fit and beautiful and sexy, and I can't." But Rancic swiftly moves through these difficult times. "I refuse to be broken [by what people say]...I have so many beautiful things in my life."

2015 continued to be a big year for Rancic when she made the decision to leave E! News after more than a decade. As she shared with People, "I took on a challenge 14 years ago. I was a young reporter, and E! News was my dream job. It's been an incredible journey. But after 14 years, I have nothing else to accomplish on the show. I want to grow as a person, as a businesswoman, as a host, and in order for me to grow, I need to take on a new venture and new challenges."

Aside from her career, family took center stage for the 40-year-old Rancic. She continued on to say, "I've worked day in and day out for 14 years. I'm looking forward to being able to stay in bed a little longer with Duke every morning and take him to school and on play dates!"

So what's next for Rancic? She is far from slowing down. After leaving E!, Rancic was able to take more time to focus on her clothing line, wine line, and being a New York Times best-selling author. On top of that, she wanted to take the time to be a mom to her son, Duke.

Rancic has always been open about her life, both the ups and downs, and continues to show her strength. She spoke on her journey with Michigan Avenue Magazine, saying, "I used to think I was strong, but I didn't realize how strong I could be. I remember a great quote that I used to always look at; something along the lines of, 'You realize your true strength when you have no other choice but to be strong.'" I can't wait to see what this strong, fabulous woman does next.