Clea Shearer's Breast Cancer Journey
- “The Home Edit” star Clea Shearer, 43, who was diagnosed breast cancer in 2022 and has since undergone eight surgeries, was worried she’d need an emergency surgery over the weekend and have to “go flat” after symptoms arose. Thankfully, she didn’t need surgery, but the health scare prompted a whirlwind of emotions, which she took to social media to share with her fans.
- It’s understandable why Shearer didn’t want to lose her breasts and undergo another surgery, but it’s important to appreciate our body no matter what it looks like, and that’s a powerful message that can likely resonate with many cancer survivors out there who’ve struggled with body image after treatment.
- “Body image is both the mental picture that you have of your body and the way you feel about your body when you look in a mirror,” Dr. Marianna Strongin, a New York-based licensed clinical psychologist, tells SurvivorNet. “As you allow yourself to spend more time looking at all of you, you will begin having a new relationship with your body.”
- Breast reconstruction surgery, which Shearer had, is an option for women after going through a mastectomy for breast cancer treatment. The reconstruction process can happen at the time of the surgery to remove the breast or later on.
Luckily, surgery wasn’t needed and the antibiotics she was given help significantly, however, she admits “the experience was definitely a lesson in listening to your body.”
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She then recounting waking up on Sunday morning “not feeling great” while she and Joanna were headed to New York to make an appearance on “Live with Kelly and Mark.”
Despite initially feeling as if she could power through the pain, she explained further, “I’ve sadly developed a pretty high threshold for pain. While we were at the airport, I had to admit that something was seriously wrong and that I needed to cancel the trip. It was definitely a lesson in listening to your body, and I’m so glad I did.
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“By yesterday, things had gotten worse. My breast was more red, hotter to the touch, and felt like there was pressure building. I FaceTimed with my doctor to show the progression, and we talked about going to the ER, but decided instead to get examined and an ultrasound the next day. He also told me to emotionally prepare for needing to go flat.”
Expressing how the thought of losing her breasts a second time made her “immediately burst into tears,” she continued, “I know a lot of women choose that path, but this wasn’t what I wanted. I’ve spent a year and a half in constant surgeries to make myself feel whole again and it was too much to process.
“But today, I woke up feeling better, and when I got examined, he said I had substantially improved. The ultrasound however, would be the real test…and it came back CLEAR! No fluid detected which means I (hopefully) can avoid surgery this time. The antibiotics seem to be working, and I keep talking to my implant to stay alive like it’s a tamagotchi.”
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Shearer, who shares two children with her husband photographer John Shearer, concluded, “This continues to be a long and often difficult journey, but I’m taking Joanna with me to all future appointments, because this time I got good news.
“Crying happy tears sure beats the other way around. Sending love. [heart emoji] Clea.
We’re happy Shearer has been given good news and won’t be needing another surgery. She’s still looking great and remaining positive.
She even took to her Instagram story to say she was “potentially going to need emergency surgery and go completely flat.”
Shearer added, “I know a lot of women choose that, but this was not my choice. The thought of losing my breasts twice was too much to process. So this time I was REALLY scared. I usually handle these things really well, but it just broke me.
“It felt like I was going back to such a dark time. But my mother reminded me that I’m NOT going back, because this time I do not have cancer. I’m not out of the woods yet, but this is great news and hopefully I continue to move in the right direction.”
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It’s wonderful to see Shearer continuing to be open with her breast health journey. She also recently took her costar Teplin to get checked for breast cancer.
She wrote in another post, “I took Joanna to get a mammogram and ultrasound today after a tiny scare, and I’m so relieved that she is totally fine! It was a wild experience to be in the same room where I received very different news.
“Hearing how it *could* have gone, was like watching an alternate universe. Thankfully, Joanna’s path won’t look like mine and I’m so grateful.”
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Clea Shearer’s Breast Cancer Diagnosis
Clea Shearer’s cancer journey began on March 8, 2022 after discovering a lump.
“I found a lump myself the last week of February,” Shearer posted to Instagram at the time. “I had been trying to make an appt with my OB(GYN) for several months, and even when I told them I found a lump, they couldn’t accommodate me.”
“I had to request a mammogram from my general doctor, which led to an ultrasound and then an emergency triple biopsy,” she added.
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Shearer would later be diagnosed with breast cancer. She was initially told her cancer was stage 1, but during a nine-hour surgery in April 2022, doctors found cancer in one of her lymph nodes, which elevated the cancer to stage 2.
She was diagnosed with an “aggressive and fast-moving” breast cancer, but she thankfully caught it early. Clea had two tumors, one measuring 2 centimeters in size and the other 3 centimeters.
According to People, the type of cancer Shearer was diagnosed with was stage 2 invasive mammary carcinoma, a type of early-stage breast cancer that has developed in the breast or spread to neighboring lymph nodes.
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Stage 2 breast cancers are either larger than stage 1 tumors or have moved to a few nearby lymph nodes. Treatment will likely be some combination of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. If chemotherapy is also needed after surgery, the radiation is delayed until the chemo is done. The same approach is taken to hormone receptor and HER2 positive as stage 1.
Early-stage breast cancer means that there’s a small tumor in the breast and that there are no lymph nodes affected.
“For stage one breast cancer, the first step is to remove the cancer. If a woman needs a lumpectomy, most often, she will have radiation after that. In some instances, depending on her age, she may not need radiation,” she explained further.
“Depending on the size and other features such as family history, a patient may opt for more aggressive surgery. So even for an early stage 1 breast cancer, a woman may elect a mastectomy to remove her whole breast. Then, once that surgery happens, a pathologist is able to look at that tissue underneath the microscope and decide what treatment a woman needs after the surgery has removed it.”
Shearer underwent treatment, which included a double mastectomy.
Her treatment also included both chemotherapy and radiation. During chemotherapy, patients receive cancer-killing drugs either orally or intravenously. Radiation therapy is also aimed at killing cancer cells, except it’s administered using high-energy X-ray beams aimed at cancer cells.
Shearer’s first round of chemotherapy occurred in May 2022. However, a common side effect of chemotherapy is hair loss, and the reality TV star also experienced it during this emotional phase of the journey.
“Very short hair, and really don’t care,” she wrote in an Instagram post about a week after cutting all her hair off. “This first round of chemo has been a lot, both physically and mentally. It wiped me out for a few days, but it makes the good days feel that much better.”
In November 2022, Shearer revealed she was “cancer free”; however, she still copes with survivorship.
Learning About Breast Implants
Thankfully, Shearer’s recent scare wasn’t associated with her breast implants, but there is a possible link between breast implants and cancer; specifically between implants and anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), a cancer of the immune system. Researchers don’t know if the implant filling (i.e. saline or silicone) impacts the development of ALCL.
Meanwhile, Breast implant illness (BII) is a condition with symptoms that include fatigue, joint pain, memory and concentration problems, and more, says Breastcancer.org. Experts believe this condition is due to having an autoimmune reaction to the breast implants.
Breastcancer.org notes that BII is a separate condition from the types of cancer, which are rare, that can develop in scar tissue and fluid surrounding a breast implant, including breast implant-associated large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), other forms of lymphoma, and squamous cell carcinoma.
According to the FDA, the lists associated with all FDA-approved implants include:
- Additional surgeries
- Breast implant associated-anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL)
- Systemic symptoms, Breast Implant Illness (BII)
- Scar tissue that squeezes the implant
- Breast pain
- Rupture (tears or holes in the shell) of saline and silicone gel-filled implants
- Deflation of saline-filled implants
- Silent (no symptoms) rupture of silicone gel-filled implants
- Infection
“The silicone used for breast implants is different than injectable silicone. Injectable silicone is not FDA-approved for breast augmentation, breast reconstruction, or for body contouring,” the FDA explains.
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In an earlier interview, SurvivorNet spoke with Dr. Andrea Pusic, Chief of Plastic Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, about the safety of implants. She says, “Many years ago there were concerns about silicone implants, and silicone implants were taken out of the U.S. market.”
Dr. Pusic continues, “Subsequent to that there were a number of very large studies that gave us new information about the performance of silicone implants.
“Subsequent also to that, there’s been further improvements in the silicone implants we are able to offer patients. If that implant does leak, the silicone would rarely go anywhere, and it won’t make you sick.”
She says that implants are generally safe, but that they require surveillance, too.
Are Breast Implants Dangerous?
Doctors Weigh In On Breast Implant Concerns
In an earlier interview with SurvivorNet, Dr. Sarah Cate, the lead physician for the Special Surveillance Breast Program at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, and Dr. Jordan Jacobs, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, discussed breast implant concerns for survivors of breast cancer, following the release of FDA safety communication. The FDA received 10 medical device reports (MDRs) about squamous cell carcinoma and 12 reports about various lymphomas connected to breast implants.
Doctors Cate and Jacobs told SurvivorNet, regarding the FDA safety communication, “personally don’t think there is cause for alarm.”
The doctors believe the data shared by the FDA does not conclusively tie breast cancer to implants. Although, the pair does say, “the fact that the cancers were found in the implant capsules is certainly concerning and requires further investigation.”
Dr. Cate and Dr. Jacobs note how the FDA has required the placement of warnings on breast implant packaging. Additionally, there is newly an implant checklist that patients must sign and review before undergoing implant surgery. The doctors noted how ALCL, a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, has been associated with implants for years.
The doctors affirmed that textured implants, those linked to ALCL, are not used at Mount Sinai. The doctors also note that implants require monitoring, and that if there are an adverse conditions spotted after the implants, they should be reported to the FDA.
Dr. Cate and Dr. Jacobs tell SurvivorNet, “Patients who have implants placed for either cosmetic or reconstructive purposes should have yearly follow-ups with their surgeons.”
They add that “there are recommendations from the FDA for routine (every 2-3 years) MRIs to evaluate the integrity of the implant and the surrounding capsule.”
If you do find yourself in a situation where an evaluation of your implants is needed, you will undergo a physical exam and imaging studies “to evaluate the implant shell integrity, determine if there is fluid around the implant and visualize the implant capsule.” Most breast radiologists can perform sampling fluid, as well, so that the fluid can be examined to see if there are any abnormal cells present.
“Surgical management includes removal of the implant and the surrounding capsule, which is sent to pathology to rule out atypical cells and/or cancer,” Dr. Cate and Dr. Jacobs added.
Body Positivity After Breast Cancer
Clea Shearer’s love for her body and determination to keep her breasts is certainly powerful and a message that can likely resonate with many cancer survivors out there who’ve struggled with body image after treatment.
Despite not dealing with any health issues, it’s importance to understand that body image problems are not unusual, especially for so many people dealing with health challenges – whether cancer or another type of illness.
You should try to work on how you view your body because it can positively impact your emotional and physical well-being as a whole.
Learn to Accept Yourself A Huge Part of Living With Cancer
“Every day of our lives is really filled with uncertainty” but those facing a cancer diagnosis tend to feel that uncertainty at a more extreme level, Dr. William Breitbart, the chair of the Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, previously told SurviorNet.
Dr. Breitbart also said that learning to embrace that uncertainty is a part of living, not just for those fighting cancer, but for everyone.
“You may not be able to control those but you have control over how you choose to respond.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Marianna Strongin, a New York-based licensed clinical psychologist, also has some helpful advice. She encourages people that spending time in front of the mirror can help with body image.
Although “research has found that when looking in the mirror we are more likely to focus on the parts of our body we are dissatisfied with” which can cause “a negative self-view and lower self-esteem,” it’s important to look at the parts of your body that you love and the parts of your body that you don’t.
Eventually, Dr. Strongin says, doing so can help you create a more accepting relationship with yourself.
Dr. Andrea Pusic explains how reconstruction can help some women feel whole again
“Body image is both the mental picture that you have of your body and the way you feel about your body when you look in a mirror,” she said. “As you allow yourself to spend more time looking at all of you, you will begin having a new relationship with your body.”
Whether you are living with cancer or some other type of illness, it’s important to know you’re not alone if you’re having a hard time with how you view your body after receiving a diagnosis or going through treatment.
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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