Cancer can be a pretty deadly disease and, because there is a lot of stigma surrounding it, not all people feel comfortable opening up about their experiences with it, which is really too bad. Because of this, we decided to take a look at celebrities who have fought cancer, won and have had the courage to open up and talk their experiences with it. These celebrities are a great inspiration because they have shown a considerable amount of strength, courage and dignity in how they handled being diagnosed with cancer. Here is our list of 9 celebrities who kicked cancer’s butt!
9. Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro has been cancer free now for over a decade. The notoriously private actor was diagnosed with prostate cancer back in 2003 and he reportedly underwent surgery that same year. De Niro was able to make a full recovery because his cancer was detected early and because he had opted for the surgery. While the Oscar-winning actor was able to beat his cancer, his father wasn’t. He died in 1993 of the prostrate cancer.
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8. Christina Applegate
In 2008, Christina Applegate was diagnosed with breast cancer. Although she initially opted to have a lumpectomy because the cancer was only in one of her breasts, she later decided to undergo a double mastectomy when she learned that she carried the BRCA gene mutation. “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,” Applegate said. She has been cancer-free ever since.
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7. Cynthia Nixon
During a routine mammogram, Cynthia Nixon was diagnosed with breast cancer. Initially, she decided not to go public with her diagnosis; however, after a couple of years of silence, she finally decided to share her experience. “I want them [women] most to hear me saying that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. So the only thing to really be afraid of is if you don’t go get your mammograms, because there’s some part of you that doesn’t want to know, and that’s the thing that’s going to trip you up. That’s the thing that could have a really bad endgame,” Nixon said
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6. Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer; however, getting the diagnosis wasn’t exactly easy. Initially, during a routine mammogram, a doctor gave her the all clear; however, shortly after that, she noticed a lump. After a lumpectomy, it was revealed that she had breast cancer. Minogue then underwent surgery and chemotherapy. These days, she urges women to trust their instincts and go in for a second opinion if they have any doubts. Good advice!
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5. Sofia Vergara
Sofia Vergara successfully battled thyroid cancer over a decade ago and the experience changed her priorities entirely. “Going through the whole process of getting my thyroid out, then the radiation and all the stuff, of course you change your life – because your priorities change,” Vergara told FoxNews.com. “You realize that no matter how much beauty, money, success you have – if you don’t have health, you have nothing, because you can’t do anything.”
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4. Michael C. Hall
A few years ago, the star of “Dexter” underwent treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma and he has been cancer-free ever since. “There is a lot of cancer in my family, people who’ve gone through it, survived it, died from it. Going through that experience maybe helped me to feel closer to some of them,” Michael C. Hall said. “I had the luxury to really commit to my treatment. I have good health insurance. Truly that makes things a lot easier.”
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3. Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas shocked the world when he announced that he had advanced-stage throat cancer, which he later said was actually tongue cancer. The Oscar-winning actor underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatment and is currently cancer free. According to Douglas, he lied about the cancer being in the throat as opposed to the tongue because the prognosis isn’t so good for the latter. If the cancer had spread, he risked losing part of his jaw and tongue.
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2. Camille Grammer
Camille Grammer – who was diagnosed with early-stage endometrial cancer –recently announced that she is cancer free. “There are no traces of endometrial cancer found, and I’m incredibly lucky and blessed. I’m so thankful for the support from the sisterhood of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” she said. It looks like it wasn’t easy. The former reality TV star underwent a radical hysterectomy, as well as chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
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1. Sheryl Crowe
After a routine mammogram, Sheryl Crowe discovered that she had early-stage breast cancer; however, after a lumpectomy and radiation therapy, she made a full recovery. Being diagnosed with cancer definitely shifted her paradigm. “It doesn’t run in my family,” she told Shape magazine. “And I’ve always worked out and been fit, so I figured I’d never get sick. But when I was diagnosed, I realized disease isn’t about how fit you are. In my mind, it’s so much more about how you live your life and how much stress you’re under.”