Brain Injury Advocates
- Former Fox sports reporter Britt McHenry, 36, is feeling comforted by Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke, 35.
- The actress has been speaking up about surviving two brain aneurysms while filming HBO’s legendary show, sharing how much she still continues to suffer.
- As far as Britt’s health goes, the D.C.-based podcast host had a "golf-ball sized" brain tumor removed in 2020, and has gone through similar issues as she gets back to life post cancer.
- Most brain tumors aren't actually cancerous. Less than one third (about 32%) of brain tumors are considered malignant (cancerous), according to the American Brain Tumor Association. However, benign tumors may still require surgery.
Emilia, 35, has been speaking up about surviving two brain aneurysms while filming HBO’s legendary show, sharing how much she still continues to suffer.
Read MoreSurviving brain cancer, an astrocytoma tumor that requires MRI scans every 4 months to monitor because it will one day grow back, I resonate with Emilia Clarke's feelings here. So grateful she speaks up with her large platform for survivors. https://t.co/K7TQxWpbHP
Britt McHenry (@BrittMcHenry) July 18, 2022
Britt is certainly accustomed to being in the spotlight. Prior to her brief time at Fox, Britt said on Twitter she was fired by ESPN in 2017, during a round of lay-offs, for being conservative and white. She later admitted there were a number of factors involved in her dismissal (she had previously been suspended by the network after a video went viral of her insulting a woman in a parking lot due to her car being towed).
As for the massively famous Emilia, known fondly by mega-fans as Daenerys Targaryen on GOT, she recently talked about her struggles on BBC One’s Sunday Morning.
“The amount of my brain that is no longer usableit’s remarkable that I am able to speak, sometimes articulately, and live my life completely normally with absolutely no repercussions,” she shared, admitting her good fortune and gratitude. “I am in the really, really, really small minority of people that can survive that.”
To give back, Emilia supports others with brain injuries, and in 2019, helped launch a fundraiser called SameYou to help people suffering and trying to recover, as she knows how terrifying these scary health circumstances can be.
The London native’s first episode took place in 2010 during season one of filming Game of Thrones when she was 24. It was a life-threatening stroke triggered by bleeding around the brain, called a subarachnoid hemorrhage. She couldn’t speak properly or remember her own name for about a week, but miraculously recovered. Two seasons later, she had a lump on her brain, thankfully not cancerous, but it was causing “paralyzing” headaches and needed to be removed.
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Thankfully, Emilia has been healthy since and has had continued success in films such as 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story and 2019’s Last Christmas.
Britt McHenry’s Cancer Diagnosis
Although Britt was originally trying to keep her diagnosis under wraps, she decided to take control of the narrative back in February of 2020, and ever since she has been vocal on her socials and urging people to get in and get a brain MRI if something doesn't seem right.
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It was actually Britt's chiropractor who suggested she get an MRI, which caught her cancer just in time. "I will always be grateful to him," she has said.
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When Britt decided to speak out about her health, she shared with her supporters that a "golf-ball sized" tumor was found on her brain, and added that she would be having surgery. She said that her doctors believe the tumor was cancerous, but it was unknown at the time.
"I was trying to keep this relatively private. But as usual, things are being said without my consent," she wrote on Twitter. Britt had surgery for her brain cancer in April of 2020. She disclosed that the tumor was found in her left frontal lobe.
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"I struggled a bit emotionally with that quick turn of events later," she posted on Instagram about the surgery. "The headaches I had attributed to stress from hard stuff I was experiencing were actually brain tumor symptoms. It had grown so large, it was near my eyes and the headaches involved vomiting."
Headaches are common, but if they don't go away after proper hydration and rest, it's important to go in and get checked, especially if you are experiencing nausea as well.
Not All Brain Tumors Are Cancerous
Even though Britt's story is quite scary and can happen to anyone, it is also very rare to experience. Plus, a lot of people think "cancer" when they hear the word tumor. However, most brain tumors aren't actually cancerous. Less than one third (about 32%) of brain tumors are considered malignant (cancerous), according to the American Brain Tumor Association.
If a tumor is made up of normal-looking cells, then the tumor is benign. But these tumors may still require treatment, such as surgery. Because of this, they are often referred to as "non-malignant," since the word benign can be misleading.
The most common type of non-malignant brain tumors are meningiomas, however, there are 120 different types of brain and central nervous system tumors, according to ABTA.
Oftentimes after an MRI, a biopsy will be performed on a brain tumor to determine its type. Sometimes, the results of imaging tests show that a tumor is likely to be non-malignant, and a biopsy is not necessary. Britt didn't disclose whether or not she had a biopsy, simply stating that her tumor would be removed with surgery.
All that matters is that she beat the disease and is giving others hope who are having to suffer from the same ordeal. Please talk to a doctor immediately if you have similar issues to Britt or Emiliaor any other concerns.
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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