Kate Jackson is well-known for her performances in James and the Giant Peach and Charlie’s Angels. Jackson’s fans might not be aware that she has battled cancer twice.
The 73-year-old actress, who was nominated for several primetime Emmys for her performance in Charlie’s Angels, twice battled breast cancer. She claimed she was “forced to face” her “personal mortality” during her initial cancer battle in a 1990s interview.
Jackson received her initial diagnosis in January 1987 while contributing to the popular television program Scarecrow and Mrs. King.
Because another cast member had the flu, Jackson was given the day off from work. However, instead of lounging around the entire day, she went for a mammogram because she had a premonition that morning.
She described her unease as coming out of nowhere but being obvious.
“I jumped out of bed and told her she needed a mammogram. ‘”.
She trusted her gut and had her first mammogram, an X-ray of the breast that revealed a small lump in her left breast.
She underwent a biopsy as a result to determine whether the cells were cancerous.
It wasn’t a lump, she insisted.
Even my sense of touch was nonexistent. It was teeny. “.
The biopsy determined that the tumor was cancerous despite its size. Four days later, it was removed by a lumpectomy, and while she was back at work, radiation therapy was administered.
She overcame her initial illness a year later, and in 1989 she began acting in the American sitcom Baby Boom.
Sadly, the actress’ second bout with cancer was discovered two years after the first one, during a routine mammogram.
Although she overcame her cancer, Jackson was emotionally affected by the two diagnoses.
She said, “The range of emotions you go through is remarkable.
But I chose to think positively.
I didn’t pay any attention to my negative thoughts.
“.
Follow-up scans are the only way to identify a recurrence, which is the return of cancer after treatment.
Your breast or scar may appear or feel different, according to Cancer Research UK.
According to the charity, a mastectomy, or removal of the entire breast, may be necessary as treatment for a recurrence depending on the previous treatment you received.
Additional treatments include radiotherapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and drugs that specifically target cancer.
In 1989, Jackson had a partial mastectomy and reconstructive plastic surgery.
Jackson remembered when she awoke from surgery, “The first thing I heard was good news.”. Thank God, my lymph nodes were clean. “I was extremely lucky. “.
