Shannen Doherty is speaking candidly about her health amid her stage IV breast cancer battle.
In a new feature with Elle, the 48-year-old actress opened up about the moment she learned her cancer had returned. Earlier this year, she underwent a PET scan following severe back pain. She said, “It was no longer, ‘I worked out, and I’m a little sore.’ It was like, ‘God, this hurts!’”
When her oncologist broke the devastating news of her cancer’s return to her, Shannen says she began reflecting on her life: “I was like, ‘Okay, do I have good karma? Do I have bad karma? Why would I have bad karma?’ I started taking stock of my life and the things I’d done, and the things I hadn’t done. How I was with people.”
Shannen first revealed her diagnosis publicly back in February, nearly three years after going into remission. The actress told ABC News, “It’s going to come out in a matter of days or a week that I have stage IV…So my cancer came back and that’s why I’m here.”
The “Charmed” alum has been very open about her battle with cancer since being diagnosed initially with breast cancer in 2015. But she also explained why she wanted to share that her cancer had returned, revealing that that upcoming court documents would reveal her diagnosis. She is suing State Farm for damages to her home from the 2019 Los Angeles wildfires.
The “Beverly Hills, 90210” star also shared that she was focusing more on the little things. “I try to treasure all the small moments that most people don’t really see or take for granted. The small things are magnified for me. We have this endless well within us, and it’s just about continuing to dig in that well for the strength to face adversity—and so that we can also see all the beauty.”
The actress also says she’s taking steps to prepare for the worst.
“I haven’t sat down to write letters. That’s something I need to do. There are things I need to say to my mom. I want my husband to know what he’s meant to me,” she revealed.
And Shannen also says she’s considered making video messages for her loved ones to watch when she’s gone, but she can’t bring herself to do so. “…Whenever it comes time for me to do it, it feels so final. It feels like you’re signing off, and I’m not signing off. I feel like I’m a very, very healthy human being. It’s hard to wrap up your affairs when you feel like you’re going to live another 10 or 15 years.”
Shannen isn’t letting anyone else dictate how she spends her time amid her diagnosis—she’s got several projects in the works. “It’s like anybody with Stage IV faces this sort of thing, where others want to put you out to pasture,” she said. “I’m not ready for pasture. I’ve got a lot of life in me.”
Shannen Doherty Through The Years
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