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Christina Applegate mastectomy

By Ruth Doherty on Wednesday 20 August 2008

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Marie Claire Celebrity News: Christina Applegate

Christina Applegate has revealed she has undergone a double mastectomy to clear herself of breast cancer, and ensure the disease doesn't return.

The actress told interviewer Robin Roberts about her ordeal on Good Morning America.

The Samantha Who? star was diagnosed with an early form of the disease in one breast last month but, after watching her mother, Nancy Priddy, battle the disease only to see it return later, and because she carries the BRCA1 cancer gene, she made the heart-breaking, dramatic decision.

She explained: 'My decision, after looking at all the treatment plans that were possibilities for me, the only one that seemed the most logical and the one that was going to work for me was to have a bilateral mastectomy. So basically I had a prophylactic double mastectomies.'

She added: 'I didn't want to go back to the doctors every four months for testing and squishing and everything. I just wanted to kind of be rid of this whole thing for me. This was the choice that I made, and it was a tough one.'

The surgery took place three weeks ago, and Christina – who said she was now 100% clear of cancer – will undergo reconstructive surgery over the next eight months. The star even managed to joke that she'll 'have cute boobs till I'm 90'.

The actress also cited her 67-year-old mother, whom she desribed as a 'quiet warrrior', as her inspiration and rock.

'I watched her have a mastectomy, and then I watched her go through two years of chemotherapy and eight surgeries and a hysterectomy,' she said.

'I've watched this woman survive both of those things, so for me there was always that sense that I was going to be okay, no matter what.'

Wednesday 20 August 2008

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Good on her I say... what a horrific decision to have to make... but then again life over vanity isn't that hard!
Comment by Amy Marriott on August 20 12:36

I would just like to say how much I admire her for taking, what must have been, an agonising decision but ultimately one that could well save her life.
Bless her heart, wish her a quick recovery and a healthy and happy future. x
Comment by karen on August 20 12:39

What a tough and very brave decision..best wishes to Christina Applegate.
Comment by anni on August 20 12:41

I think this lady is very brave and she has showed me that there is light in the end of the tunnel. Having your two breasts removed is a traumatic experience, but medicine is so advanced nowadays that we can still have our womanhood.
Lets invest in more bio-research and technology.
Comment by Curitiba Brazil on August 20 13:03

I am shocked and saddened that such a beautiful and fine comedy actress should have to go through this dreadful situation. She has made a brave decision and I am sure the right one. I send my good wishes to her and her mother and wish them both a long and happy life. Pauline in Liverpool England
Comment by Pauline on August 20 13:13

I am so happy that she is being upfront about what she is going through. I have had breast cancer two years ago (at 34) and have had a volentary mascectomy two months ago (for much the same reasons as Christina).

I'm hoping that everybody who reads this goes and feels their breasts, it doesn't matter how old you are. Everytime I go back to the breast clinic the ladies there seem to be getting younger (one was early twenties the last time I went).

Come on ladies, feel your breasts!!!

Good luck Christina and to anybody who knows or suffers with CANcer.

CANCER can be beaten!!!

Janine
Comment by Janine Pelling on August 20 15:14

What a heroic decision to make! Christina Applegate is a wonderful actress and now an inspiration to us all. Good on you Christina and may you have a long and healthy life. All the best to you!
Comment by Teena on August 20 15:18

What an absolutely brave and tough decision. Christina is very courageous woman and an inspiration to others that are battling with breast cancer! I wish her all the very best!
Comment by Tracey on August 20 15:31

Christina, and other young women in the public eye, who are so brave and couragous as to make something so personal public, deserve nothing but support and admiration. I only hope their example encourages other young women to check themselves regularly, and act quickly on any concerns they have.
I have just gone through a 5 month breast cancer scare myself, and have been told, at 29, that I stand a pretty good chance of developing it in the future, so have to have annual checks now and mammograms from the age of 35. But, considering breast cancer killed my grandmother, skin cancer my grandfather and another rare form nearly took my mother, it's a small price to pay. I hope Christina realises how much of an encouragement she is.
Comment by Jen on August 20 18:32

This must be one of the most difficult and heartbreaking decisions a woman has to make. Both of these ladies are an absolute inspiration and I'd also like to wish them both a long, happy and healthy life.
Comment by Stacey on August 22 21:30

My mother, 81, has ovarian cancer. She had the test to determine whether this is genetic or not. Thankfully, it is not. I have 2 sisters, and we have a total of 5 daughters. The test was $3000, but medicare paid for it. It would be helpful if all insurances paid for testing on cancers that may be genetic based, but not all do.
IT IS SO IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE SYMPTOMS! Her symptoms included: taste buds that made food taste horrible, fullness in her abdomen, and weight loss.
When my sister, who is a Naturopath, found out about the symptoms, she immediately asked for her to have imaging. Her doctor was only prescribing antibiotics for her symptoms, which he said could be a sinus infection! Unfortunately, it had spread from the ovary to an unoperable location by her aorta. She has had 10 chemos and her cancer is uncurable, but treatable.
Comment by Barbara on August 23 07:37

HI I HAD BREAST CANCER IN 2001 I HAD A FULL MASCECTOMY ON MY RIGHT BREAST,YES IT WAS A BIG SHOCK TO ME TO FIND OUT THIS. I WENT THROUGH ALL THE TREATMENT TWO YEARS AFTER I HAD SECONDARY BREAST CANCER THIS TIME IT WENT IN TO MY RIGHT LUNG,I KNEW WHAT TO EXEPECT THIS TIME AND I WAS A LOT STRONGER,IT HAS BEEN SIX AND HALF YEARS FOR ME NOW,BUT I DID GET ASTHMA TWO MONTHS AFTER MY LUNG SURGERY, BUT THAT DOES NOT STOP ME LIVING I AM HAPPY TO BE ALIVE, GOOD LUCK CHRISTINA.
Comment by Lauraine on August 24 15:19

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