‘You’re a warrior… you know we’re holding you tight’: Friends including Selma Blair and Sarah Michelle Gellar donate support. TV star Shannen Doherty has revealed in a moving video of her radiation therapy treatment that she is now battling brain cancer
- American actress Shannen Doherty has announced her diagnosis of terminal brain cancer
- Friends and fans went online to send 90210 Star congratulatory messages
Tributes were celebrated for US actress Shannen Doherty, who reveals she is now battling terminal brain cancer.
The ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ star was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 and revealed in a video posted online on Wednesday that the disease had spread to her brain.
She shared in a video how she started radiation therapy in January: “My anxiety is obvious.” “I’m extremely claustrophobic and a lot has happened in my life.”
Show business friends and fans stopped by to offer their tributes and heartfelt wishes. Sarah Michelle Geller wrote, ‘You are a warrior,’ as Selma Blair said, ‘I wish you all the wise peace you have learned to find yourself in the moments of terror… Love.’ Love.’
Spread to the brain occurs in less than 15 percent of breast cancer patients. Doherty announced in 2017 that she was in remission, but in 2019 her cancer returned.
That year, she also shared the tragic reason she couldn’t have children, as the hormones “put my body into menopause straight away” and taking estrogen to reverse it could increase her risk of cancer coming back.
Sarah Michelle Gellar left a message for Shannen Doherty below her video on Instagram
Fellow actress Selma Blair uttered “loving words” on Shannen’s profile after she shared the video
American filmmaker and actor Kevin Smith spoke kindly and personally to Shannen
Shannen shared videos of her beginning treatment in January on her page, sparking friendly messages of support
This week, the actress shared a video of herself during her treatment on Instagram.
On Wednesday, she shared a second with intimate scenes of crying while undergoing a CT scan.
She described the scene: “On January 12, the first round of radiation took place.”
“My fear is obvious. I suffer from extreme claustrophobia and have had a lot going on in my life.
“I’m lucky to have great doctors like Dr. Amin Mirahdi and the amazing technicians at Cedar Sinai.
“But this fear… The riot….. the timing of it all…. This is what cancer can look like.”
Fans on Twitter also went online to share their thoughts.
Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, suggesting the cancer had reached stage two or three and had spread to her lymph nodes.
She underwent a mastectomy and when that didn’t completely solve the problem, she received chemotherapy and radiation until announcing in 2017 that her cancer was in remission.
She announced on Tuesday that she underwent a CT scan in early January, which found brain metastases.
Each year in the United States, approximately 264,000 cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in women and approximately 2,400 in men. And those interest rates are going up.
In recent years, incidence rates have increased by 0.5 percent per year, which experts say could be due to an increase in overall female obesity, as well as falling fertility rates and an increasing age of women at their first birth.
Brain metastases, or the condition in which cancer has spread to the brain, is rare in breast cancer patients, affecting about 10 to 15 percent.
Shannen Doherty cries as she begins radiation therapy in January, according to a video released in June
Shannen Doherty is pictured with fellow 90210 Luke Perry in Beverley Hills
Twitter users also wrote friendly words on their profile after the updates on Shannen’s page
A user on Instagram showed sympathy for Shannen and left a friendly note below the latest video
Health journalist Benjamin Ryan wrote a tribute to the actor on Twitter after the update
Twitter users also shared fond memories of Doherty’s performances and sent best wishes to the star.
One user, Dilian Esper, stressed the importance of getting screening and detecting cancer early.
A leading health body recommended this year that the age at which women have regular breast cancer screening should be reduced from 50 to 40.
According to the USPSTF, which drafted the proposal in response to rising rates among middle-aged women, the change would save 20 percent more lives.