Hallmark Star Says Cancer Has Spread: ‘I Don’t Want to Die’

Shannen Doherty, 52, shared an update on her health.

The “Growing the Big One” actress has been battling breast cancer since 2015. Now it has spread to her bones, according to a new interview with People magazine.

She underwent a mastectomy before having chemotherapy and radiation treatment to send her cancer into remission by 2017. In 2019, however, it returned, and it’s been an uphill battle for Doherty ever since.

“I don’t want to die,” she told People. “I’m not done with living, I’m not done with loving, I’m not done with creating. I’m not done with hopefully changing things for the better.”

Doherty and her ex-husband, Kurt Iswarienko, split in 2023. Doherty doesn’t have any children.

Here’s what you need to know:

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Doctors Found Cancer in Shannen Doherty’s Brain Prior to Her Latest Diagnosis

Doherty hasn’t had an easy few years since her breast cancer returned in 2019. She’d been receiving treatment for the recurrence when doctors found cancer in her brain in January 2023.

On Instagram, Doherty said that a CT scan showed mets on her brain. Mets refer to cancer cells that travel from another part of the body — in this case, breast cancer.

“Yesterdays video was showing the process of getting fitted for the mask which you wear during radiation to your brain. January 12, the first round of radiation took place. My fear is obvious. I am extremely claustrophobic and there was a lot going on in my life,” Doherty wrote.

Now that the cancer has spread to Doherty’s bones, she’s doing the best that she can while managing the pain. However, she’s not ready to give up on life.

“People just assume that it means you can’t walk, you can’t eat, you can’t work. They put you out to pasture at a very early age —‘You’re done, you’re retired,’ and we’re not. We’re vibrant, and we have such a different outlook on life. We are people who want to work and embrace life and keep moving forward,” she added.

“My greatest memory is yet to come. I pray. I wake up and go to bed thanking God, praying for the things that matter to me without asking for too much. It connects me to a higher power and spirituality. My faith is my mantra,” Doherty also told the outlet.

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Shannen Doherty Is Terminal

Although every patient is different, metastatic breast cancer (stage IV) with a presence in the bones doesn’t have a strong survival rate.

“The five-year survival rate is estimated to be about 29%. However, many factors can impact a person’s prognosis,” according to Health.com.

Doherty is doing her best to keep up with her day-to-day when she feels up to it. In September 2023, she linked up with some old friends at ’90s Con held in Tampa, Florida. Although she did appear in good spirits, she was very honest while talking to the crowd.

“Thank you so much. You guys know how much I love crying constantly. And I do, it seems. So, thank you,” she said, according to People magazine.

“I have a fight for my life, that I deal with every day,” she added.

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