Ad
related to: shannen doherty breast cancer typeRead About Metastatic Breast Cancer And An Rx Treatment Option. Get Important Information On A Metastatic Breast Cancer Rx Treatment Option.
- Treatment Option
Learn About An Rx Treatment Option
For Metastatic Breast Cancer.
- Metastatic Breast Cancer
Visit For Info On A Metastatic
Breast Cancer Rx Treatment Option.
- Tips On Living With mBC
Tips On Coping, Motherhood,
Relationships & Nutrition
- Doctor Discussion Guide
Find A Discussion Guide To Aid
In Talking With Your Doctor
- Patient Resources
Visit For Patient Resources On A
Metastatic Breast Cancer Rx Option.
- Savings Information
Learn How To Save On A Metastatic
Breast Cancer Rx Treatment Option.
- Treatment Option
Search results
People also ask
Does Shannen Doherty have cancer?
Does Shannen Doherty have Stage 4 breast cancer?
Did Shannen Doherty get a'miracle' treatment for Stage 4 breast cancer?
What happened to Shannen Doherty?
Oct 20, 2021 · 5 min read. You’ve probably seen Shannen Doherty’s most recent posts about her breast cancer. The actress has never shied away from telling it like it is. Taken during her 6-year breast...
Sep 30, 2020 · Shannen Doherty is opening up about her health amid her ongoing battle with stage 4 breast cancer. In a new interview with ELLE, the Beverly Hills 90210 star, who was initially diagnosed...
- nicol.natale@hearst.com
- Associate Editor
Jan 30, 2024 · Jan. 30, 2024, 7:45 AM PST. By Katherine Itoh. Shannen Doherty shared a positive update on her t reatment for stage 4 breast cancer thanks to what the "Beverly Hills, 90210" star called a...
- Katherine Itoh
- Overview
- Shannen Doherty’s breast cancer spread to her brain
- Breast cancer spreading to the brain is uncommon
- Is metastatic brain cancer treatable?
- How does a brain tumor affect quality of life?
- How can you reduce the risk of brain tumors?
- Takeaway
•Shannen Doherty, star of “Charmed” and “90210,” shared her stage 4 breast cancer spread to her bones.
•In June, the actress revealed her cancer had spread to her brain.
•Doherty was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, underwent a mastectomy, and received radiation and chemotherapy.
•She announced in 2017 that she was in remission, but in 2020, she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer.
Shannen Doherty, star of “Charmed” and “Beverly Hills, 90210,” has been battling cancer for nearly a decade.
In June, the 52-year-old actress revealed her stage 4 breast cancer had spread to her brain.
On June 6, Doherty shared in an emotional Instagram post that her breast cancer had spread to her brain.
“On January 5th, my CT scan showed [metastases] in my brain,” read the caption of the video, which showed her being fitted for a mask worn while receiving radiation to the brain.
“My fear is obvious. I am extremely claustrophobic and there was a lot going on in my life,” wrote Doherty, 52. “I am fortunate as I have great doctors…. But that fear…. The turmoil….. the timing of it all…. This is what cancer can look like.”
The first round of radiation took place on January 12, she wrote.
Doherty was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, reports NBC News. She underwent a mastectomy and received chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
The actress announced in 2017 that she was in remission, but said in 2020 that she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer.
Stage 4, or metastatic, breast cancer has spread beyond the breast and nearby lymph nodes to other parts of the body.
When breast cancer spreads, it most commonly goes to the bones, liver, and lungs. In some cases, it will spread to the brain or other organs. These resulting tumors outside the breast are called metastases or “mets.”
Dr. Pavani Chalasani, a hematology-oncology specialist at The George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C., said the majority of women with breast cancer are diagnosed at an earlier stage when the cancer is easier to treat.
One of the goals of breast cancer treatment done at these earlier stages is to prevent stage 4 from happening, she told Healthline.
Dr. Parvin Peddi, a medical oncologist and director of Breast Medical Oncology for the Margie Petersen Breast Center at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, said the outlook is good for most people diagnosed with breast cancer in these earlier stages.
“Thankfully, we can cure the majority of [these breast cancer patients] if they take medications or receive chemotherapy after surgery,” she told Healthline. In addition, “the majority of those patients never have the cancer come back anywhere.”
One of the challenges of treating breast cancer that has spread to the brain, said Peddi, is that many medications used to treat aggressive cancers don’t cross the blood-brain barrier.
“So if you caught the cancer a little bit on the later side, and a few cancer cells did go to the brain, you’re going to have a hard time treating them,” she said.
However, Chalasani said certain newer medications are able to cross the blood-brain barrier, which has improved the outlook for people with metastatic brain tumors.
With these newer medications, “we are actually improving patients’ quality of life and their lifespan — trying to ensure they can live a long time, but also with good quality,” she said.
Jacoub said other treatment options are available for brain metastases, such as neurosurgery to remove the tumors, which is typically followed up with radiation therapy.
Another treatment option, he said, is stereotactic radiosurgery, which uses focused beams of radiation to treat brain tumors without cutting into the brain.
The impact of metastatic brain tumors on a person’s daily life depends on many factors, said Jacoub, including how many metastases there are in the brain, how large they are, and where they are located.
Peddi said some of the most common symptoms of metastatic brain tumors are:
•headaches
•nausea
•double vision
But again, a person’s symptoms depend on which parts of the brain are affected.
The best way to reduce the risk of breast cancer spreading to the brain is to diagnose and treat the cancer early.
“By the time the cancer cells show up on brain scans, unfortunately, it is too late,” said Peddi. “Even though patients can be treated with some modalities, they cannot be cured at that point.”
She said that’s why “we recommend that you go for your mammogram to catch the breast cancer as early as possible.”
Jacoub agreed: “Whether their breast cancer is caught through screening or caught because a woman feels a lump, the earlier the disease, the lower the chance the cancer is going to come back after treatment.”
Peddi emphasized that surgery is not the end of treatment.
“Depending on the cancer and the stage, you almost always need some medication to go throughout your body to kill the cancer cells that have escaped from the breast,” she said. Ideally, this happens “before they can lodge themselves in an organ that is critical, such as the brain.”
Actress Shannen Doherty shared in a recent interview that her stage 4 breast cancer has spread to her bones. Earlier this year she revealed that her breast cancer had spread to her brain and she was receiving treatment.
Breast cancer spreading to the brain is less common and may be treatable when detected early.
- Shawn Radcliffe
Nov 30, 2023 · Shannen Doherty says she is committed to battling stage four breast cancer, which has now spread to her bones. Speaking to People magazine, the Beverly Hills 90210 actress says she is...
Mar 1, 2022 · March 1, 2022. Stefanie Keenan / Getty Images. Shannen Doherty has not had the easiest eight years dealing with breast cancer, to say the least. In a new Instagram post, she shared a...
Dec 5, 2023 · Actor Shannen Doherty Receives ‘Miracle’ Treatment for Metastatic Breast Cancer. In her newest podcast episode, Doherty shares the latest developments in her 8-year cancer journey. By....
Ad
related to: shannen doherty breast cancer typeRead About Metastatic Breast Cancer And An Rx Treatment Option. Get Important Information On A Metastatic Breast Cancer Rx Treatment Option.
