After Faking Cancer for 7 Years, Amanda C. Riley Is Where She Belongs

Amanda C. Riley claimed to have cancer. She used her "diagnosis" to raise over $100,000 in donations from 349 different people from September 2012 through January 2019. Amanda never had cancer or any other type of terminal illness.

Amanda began the Lymphoma Can Suck It blog in 2012, documenting her battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Along with her social media feeds, Amanda shared her cancer journey with the world.

It all came crashing down in 2019 when Amanda was exposed as a scammer and was arrested for wire fraud. Shortly after, she became the topic of a top-rated podcast aptly titled Scamanda.

In addition to her blogging and sharing her cancer battle on social media, Amanda shaved her head, falsified medical records, and sued the journalist who claimed she was faking it.

Amanda’s scam was finally uncovered in 2019 when the IRS investigated her. She lost her job as principal at Pac Point Christian Academy in Gilroy, California and the family moved to Texas.

Amanda was charged with a criminal complaint in July 2020. She pled guilty to wire fraud charges in October 2021.

In May 2022, she was sentenced to five years in a federal prison. Amanda's case is the first IRS financial conviction of someone faking cancer for fundraising.

According to The Daily Mail, Amanda’s sentence was only five years thanks to testimonials from family and friends. The same family and friends claim they had no idea Amanda was always cancer-free.

“Our family struggled last Fall when Amanda finally told us all the truth,” her father wrote the court. “But thru our anger, we still see the light in her and have seen the Hell she has been through that we wouldn’t wish on anyone.”

Amanda is currently prisoner number 26385-111 at Carswell FMC in Fort Worth, Texas. She’s scheduled to be released May 8, 2026. Following that she’ll have three years of supervision.

She’s also been sentenced to pay $105,513 in restitution. The money due is only related to the wire fraud charges, it does not include any of the cash and in-kind services she received when perpetrating the scam.

It’s easy to see why Amanda’s writings connected with people. In her post, "Blessed Beyond Belief" from December 15, 2015, she writes, “Completed all my testing for "the spike" (see last post). In doing the testing, we got some unexpected red flags. Some major pulmonary issues are popping back up again requiring me to be put back on oxygen, breathing treatments, inhalers, and ..... steroids (thought I was finally free of those bastards).”

In addition to her writings, Amanda shared photos of herself in hospitals, worshipping with fellow church members and with her family, husband Cory Riley, and their two sons.

She’s still married to her husband Cory. He has no social media presence.