Rita Wilson, 65, Wife Of Tom Hanks, 66, And Mom Of Troubled Rapper ‘Chet Haze,’ 32, Says She’s ‘Honoring The 70s’ With New Album

Rita, a breast cancer survivor, is living her best life and thriving after beating back the disease.

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Rita Wilson's Breast Cancer Battle

Actress and singer Rita Wilson goes back to the 1970s for her new music project, ‘Now & Forever: Duets’ which is due out on September 27th.
The collection of hit songs are performed with five country music singers including Keith Urban, Willie Nelson, Tim McGraw, Jimmie Allen, and Vince Gill.
Wilson’s son is ‘Chet Haze,’ who’s had various controversies over the years, including declaring the summer of 2021 as “White Boy Summer.”
A breast cancer survivor, Wilson was diagnosed with invasive lobular carcinoma breast cancer in 2015, and underwent a mastectomy, followed by reconstructive surgery.

Beloved actress, singer and breast cancer warrior Rita Wilson going back to the 1970s for her new music project, ‘Now & Forever: Duets’ which is due out on September 27th.

It's a collection of hit songs performed with five country music singers including Keith Urban on Van Morrison’s “Crazy Love,” Willie Nelson on Paul Simon’s “Slip Slidin’ Away,” Tim McGraw on Bread’s “If,” Jimmie Allen on the Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There” and Vince Gill on “Without You.”

The album also features other acclaimed artists including Smokey Robinson, Jackson Browne, Leslie Odom Jr., Elvis Costello and Josh Groban.

"I wanted to honor where I came from with songs from the Seventies,” Wilson says of the album, according to Billboard. “It was really about showing enormous appreciation for the songwriting of that period how these songs are still relevant even though they're 50 years old. This album is really a continuation of sharing who I am musically, and what it is that I want to say."

Wilson’s other musical credits include a solo album, ‘AM/FM’, which she released on May 8, 2012, followed by her her second album, ‘Rita Wilson’ in 2014, and her third album ‘Bigger Picture’, released in 2018.

Wilson, 65, also has a fourth album, ‘Halfway to Home’ which debuted in 2019.

She’s also an accomplished actress, with Broadway credits as well as film appearances.

Among them, ‘Volunteers’, ‘Sleepless in Seattle’, ‘Now and Then’, ‘That Thing You Do!’, ‘Jingle All the Way’, ‘The Story of Us’, ‘Runaway Bride’, ‘It’s Complicated’, and ‘Larry Crowne’,

Wilson also appeared in the television series ‘The Good Wife.’

The Hollywood star has been married to Oscar winner Tom Hanks, 66, since 1988, and has two adult children and a granddaughter.

Their son, Chet, also known as “Chet Haze,” is an actor and rapper who recently turned 32, and has described himself as the “black sheep” of the Hanks family.

He’s had various controversies over the years, including declaring the summer of 2021 as “White Boy Summer.” .

But earlier this year, Wilson wished her son a happy birthday on Instagram, writing, “…you seek truth, you make us laugh, make Larry David laugh and share a birthday with @barackobama you are and always have been special. You have brought so much joy to our family. We love you so much!!!”

Rita Wilson’s Breast Cancer Journey

Wilson was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and underwent a mastectomy, followed by reconstructive surgery.

The actress and singer's specific diagnosis was invasive lobular carcinoma, which only represents a small portion of breast cancers. The most common type of breast cancer starts in the breast ducts.

Invasive lobular carcinoma begins in the milk-producing glands, called lobules, of the breast where cancer cells have "broken out" of the lobule and may spread to other areas of the body.

Related: When Should I Get a Mammogram?

Treatment options for breast cancer include surgery (via a mastectomy or lumpectomy), chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Some people also get preventative mastectomies if there's a history of breast cancer in the family and thus an elevated risk of developing the disease.

Advocating for Your Health

When working with your medical team, tell them precisely what you feel and raise anything that may feel off to you. Every symptom should have a plan to address it, and if you feel like you are not being heard, continue to push and seek a second opinion if your concerns are not being addressed.

The only way to know this is to continue to push for answers, telling your medical team exactly what you are experiencing and demanding that you receive the best treatment for your specific situation.

"Every appointment you leave as a patient, there should be a plan for what the doc is going to do for you, and if that doesn't work, what the next plan is," Dr. Zuri Murell, director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview. "And I think that that's totally fair. And me as a health professional that's what I do for all of my patients."

Be Pushy, Be Your Own Advocateâ€¦ Don't Settle

Getting a Second Opinion

If you're experiencing symptoms that might be caused by cancer, it's critical to know for sure whether or not you have the disease. To do that, you should always get multiple opinions on your diagnosis.

Doctors are not always in agreement about whether your symptoms might merit further testing and whether specific treatment methods might work best for you. Sometimes, what your first doctor says might fall short of fact, and a second or third medical professional might be able to catch cancer before it grows and spreads.

Dr. Steven Rosenberg, chief of surgery at the National Cancer Institute and one of America's most renowned cancer doctors, agrees.

"If I had any advice for you following a cancer diagnosis, it would be, first, to seek out multiple opinions as to the best care, because finding a doctor who is up to the latest of information is important," Rosenberg previously told SurvivorNet. "And it's always important to get other opinions so that you can make the best decisions for yourself in consultation with your care providers."