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Shannen Doherty Just Revealed Her Breast Cancer Has Returned

by Christina Marfice
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In a heart wrenching interview, Shannen Doherty revealed her Stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis

It’s been five years since Shannen Doherty was diagnosed with breast cancer, and three years since she announced to the world that she had beat it and was in remission.

Now, she’s made another announcement, and it’s heartbreaking. Doherty’s cancer has returned. She’s been diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer, and she’s been silently fighting that battle for a year now.

In a heart wrenching interview on Good Morning America, Doherty shared the terrible news.

“It’s going to come out in a matter of days or a week that I’m stage four. So my cancer came back. And that’s why I’m here,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve processed it. It’s a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways.”

Doherty continued, “I definitely have days where I say why me. And then I go, well, why not me? Who else? Who else besides me deserves this? None of us do. But I would say that my first reaction is always concern about how am I going to tell my mom, my husband?”

This time, Doherty has been privately fighting the disease. When she was diagnosed five years ago, she was known for being extremely candid about her struggles and treatment, frequently sharing photos of everything she went through. By sharing so much about her fight, she amassed an army of supporters all over the world who mourned with her, fought with her, and celebrated with her when she announced that her cancer was gone and she was in remission in 2017.

This time, though, Doherty kept the news to herself. Despite her new diagnosis, she kept working, filming the reboot of Beverly Hills 90210. She said she chose that path this time because she wanted to prove that she was able to keep working.

“I thought, people can look at that other people with stage four can work too. Like, you know, our life doesn’t end the minute we get that diagnosis. We still have some living to do,” Doherty said.

Plus, Doherty’s job filming the 90210 reboot came just months after her close friend and 90210 costar Luke Perry died suddenly.

“It’s so weird for me to be diagnosed and then somebody who was, you know, seemingly healthy to go first,” she said. “It was really, like, shocking. And the least I could do to honor him was to do that show. I still haven’t done, in my opinion. So it’s a hard one.”

Doherty hasn’t shared any details about her treatment or what comes next. But breast cancer is an ugly monster, and we just hope she knows that, once again, she has a world full of fans standing beside her.

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