Ella's Big Win
- Ella Travolta, daughter of John Travolta and Kelly Preston, announces that she’s starring in a new film role.
- Ella lost her mother Kelly to breast cancer last July.
- Coping with parental cancer loss takes time and can be helped with tools like therapy.
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Kelly’s Breast Cancer Battle
Ella’s mom, Kelly Preston, fought breast cancer privately for two years before passing from the disease in July 2020 at the too-young age of 57. While we don’t know the specifics of Preston’s treatment, we do know that breast cancer is typically treated with chemotherapy, radiation or surgery.
After she passed, Preston’s husband John Travolta thanked doctors at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX. "My family and I will forever be grateful to her doctors and nurses at MD Anderson Cancer Center, all the medical centers that have helped, as well as her many friends and loved ones who have been by her side,” he said.
Introduction to Early-Stage Breast Cancer
Coping with the Loss of a Parent to Cancer
Travolta shared a sweet memory of her late mother on Preston’s birthday, posting a throwback picture. Losing a parent can be devastating, especially for young adults like Travolta.
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While parental cancer loss is heartbreaking and full of grief, there are ways to help mitigate the pain of the grief process. Working with a talented therapist or counselor may help some people process the complicated emotions that arise after a parent dies.
For many, therapy can be a saving grace. Camila Legaspi was just in high school, not much younger than Ella Travolta, when her mother also died of breast cancer. In a previous interview, Legaspi tells us, “I’m here because my wonderful, amazing mother, Gabriella Legaspi, passed away from breast cancer seven years ago. Therapy saved my life.”
Legaspi says, “I was dealing with some really intense anxiety and depression at that point. It just changed my life, because I was so drained by all the negativity that was going on. Going to a therapist helped me realize that there was still so much out there for me, that I still had my family, that I still had my siblings. The reality is, is when you lose someone, it’s really, really, really hard. And it’s totally OK to talk to someone.”
"Therapy Saved My Life": After Losing A Loved One, Don't Be Afraid To Ask For Help
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