diff --git a/ext/node/polyfills/worker_threads.ts b/ext/node/polyfills/worker_threads.ts
index 36314675ac..8bbd0e9296 100644
--- a/ext/node/polyfills/worker_threads.ts
+++ b/ext/node/polyfills/worker_threads.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,9 @@ import process from "node:process";
 const { JSONParse, JSONStringify, ObjectPrototypeIsPrototypeOf } = primordials;
 const {
   Error,
+  ObjectHasOwn,
   PromiseResolve,
+  SafeSet,
   Symbol,
   SymbolFor,
   SymbolIterator,
@@ -369,7 +371,7 @@ internals.__initWorkerThreads = (
     defaultExport.parentPort = parentPort;
     defaultExport.threadId = threadId;
 
-    workerData = patchMessagePortIfFound(workerData);
+    patchMessagePortIfFound(workerData);
 
     parentPort.off = parentPort.removeListener = function (
       this: ParentPort,
@@ -387,8 +389,8 @@ internals.__initWorkerThreads = (
     ) {
       // deno-lint-ignore no-explicit-any
       const _listener = (ev: any) => {
-        let message = ev.data;
-        message = patchMessagePortIfFound(message);
+        const message = ev.data;
+        patchMessagePortIfFound(message);
         return listener(message);
       };
       listeners.set(listener, _listener);
@@ -484,7 +486,10 @@ const listeners = new SafeWeakMap<
 function webMessagePortToNodeMessagePort(port: MessagePort) {
   port.on = port.addListener = function (this: MessagePort, name, listener) {
     // deno-lint-ignore no-explicit-any
-    const _listener = (ev: any) => listener(ev.data);
+    const _listener = (ev: any) => {
+      patchMessagePortIfFound(ev.data);
+      listener(ev.data);
+    };
     if (name == "message") {
       if (port.onmessage === null) {
         port.onmessage = _listener;
@@ -534,19 +539,26 @@ function webMessagePortToNodeMessagePort(port: MessagePort) {
   return port;
 }
 
+// TODO(@marvinhagemeister): Recursively iterating over all message
+// properties seems slow.
+// Maybe there is a way we can patch the prototype of MessagePort _only_
+// inside worker_threads? For now correctness is more important than perf.
 // deno-lint-ignore no-explicit-any
-function patchMessagePortIfFound(data: any) {
+function patchMessagePortIfFound(data: any, seen = new SafeSet<any>()) {
+  if (data === null || typeof data !== "object" || seen.has(data)) {
+    return;
+  }
+  seen.add(data);
+
   if (ObjectPrototypeIsPrototypeOf(MessagePortPrototype, data)) {
-    data = webMessagePortToNodeMessagePort(data);
+    webMessagePortToNodeMessagePort(data);
   } else {
     for (const obj in data as Record<string, unknown>) {
-      if (ObjectPrototypeIsPrototypeOf(MessagePortPrototype, data[obj])) {
-        data[obj] = webMessagePortToNodeMessagePort(data[obj] as MessagePort);
-        break;
+      if (ObjectHasOwn(data, obj)) {
+        patchMessagePortIfFound(data[obj], seen);
       }
     }
   }
-  return data;
 }
 
 export {
diff --git a/tests/unit_node/worker_threads_test.ts b/tests/unit_node/worker_threads_test.ts
index e16bc89666..9991e5787e 100644
--- a/tests/unit_node/worker_threads_test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit_node/worker_threads_test.ts
@@ -562,3 +562,31 @@ Deno.test({
     port1.close();
   },
 });
+
+// Test for https://github.com/denoland/deno/issues/23854
+Deno.test({
+  name: "[node/worker_threads] MessagePort.addListener is present",
+  async fn() {
+    const channel = new workerThreads.MessageChannel();
+    const worker = new workerThreads.Worker(
+      `
+      import { parentPort } from "node:worker_threads";
+      parentPort.addListener("message", message => {
+        if (message.foo) {
+          const success = typeof message.foo.bar.addListener === "function";
+          parentPort.postMessage(success ? "it works" : "it doesn't work")
+        }
+      })
+      `,
+      {
+        eval: true,
+      },
+    );
+    worker.postMessage({ foo: { bar: channel.port1 } }, [channel.port1]);
+
+    assertEquals((await once(worker, "message"))[0], "it works");
+    worker.terminate();
+    channel.port1.close();
+    channel.port2.close();
+  },
+});