Celebrity Breast Cancer Survivors

CELEBRITY BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS

Being famous does not shield you from the risk of breast cancer. The list of celebrities who have survived breast cancer includes:

• Edie Falco: Star of the TV show The Sopranos

• Rue McClanahan: Star of the TV show The Golden Girls • Olivia Newton-John: The singer was diagnosed in 1992

• Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson: Stars of the 1970s TV show Charlie’s Angels

Even men can have breast cancer. (About 1 in 100 breast cancer victims are men.) Richard Roundtree, who starred in the 1970s movie Shaft, was diagnosed in 1993 and now speaks often to raise awareness of the disease among men.

Robin Roberts, the host of Good Morning America, is one of the more notable recent examples of a celebrity diagnosed with breast cancer. Roberts first detected the condition herself during a breast self- exam. After finding the lump, she underwent both a mammogram and ultrasound examination. Then, on July 31, 2007, Roberts announced on air that she had breast cancer. She was only 46 years old. Within a week, she underwent surgery and began chemotherapy. Six months later, she celebrated her last round of chemotherapy. Today, Roberts is again hosting the show. “I am better off than so many people who find it so late,” she says. “That is why I am grateful and that again is why my battle cry is early detection!”