On the Road to Thriving
- Actress Shannen Doherty is living well and enjoying life after continuing her work on the big screen after a cancer battle.
- She had hormone therapy to fight her cancer, but it was ineffective and the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes.
- Doherty is grateful for her community, and represents how having a good support system can help you thrive with cancer.
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Shannen’s Breast Cancer Battle
Shannen Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 after finding a lump in her breast which turned out to be cancerous. She had hormone therapy to fight her cancer, but it was ineffective and the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes. Doherty underwent a single mastectomy and also had chemotherapy and radiation. After going into remission, she announced in February 2020 that her cancer returned, and this time it had spread to other parts of her body.
Surgery, like the kind Shannen Doherty had (a single mastectomy), is a common treatment path for many people fighting breast cancer. In an earlier interview, an oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute explains the path to surgery.
She says, "So when I talk to a woman who comes to me and she has breast cancer, I evaluate what the standard options for treatment for her are, which typically include cutting out the cancer which is either a lumpectomy if you can get it all with just a little scooping around of the area that's abnormal or a mastectomy for some women meaning taking the full breast because sometimes these lesions can be very extensive in the breast."
When to Consider a Mastectomy
Surrounding Yourself with Support
We love how Doherty is keeping an attitude of gratitude and remaining grateful for her community. Having a strong support network through cancer is so important.
Ovarian cancer fighter Beverly Reeves shares in an earlier interview how she thinks having a strong community during cancer is critical. She tells SurvivorNet, "If I had one piece of advice for someone who had just been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, it would be to get a strong support group together. Get your close friends. If you're connected to a faith community, get your faith community."
She continues, "Get your family. Let them know what's going on and let them help you. And sometimes that's the most difficult thing to do, but just know that they are there. If they love you, they're there to help you."
'Faith, Family, and Friends' Helped Beverly Reeves Get Through Ovarian Cancer Treatment
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