Shannen Doherty, Cancer Warrior
- “Beverly Hills, 90210" star Shannen Doherty, 52, who has been battling breast cancer for years and recently filed for divorce from her husband of 11 year, continues to embody strength and resilience amid hard times – and recently took to social media to share some encouraging words.
- She was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 after finding a lump in her breast that turned out to be cancerous. In February 2020, her breast cancer returned and spread to other parts of her body.
- Challenging oneself can actually help people facing cancer, chronic disease, or other problems to develop resilience, which is an essential coping tool.
- Dr. Samantha Boardman tells SurvivorNet that the process of pushing oneself to try new things is one of the "three wellsprings of vitality.” The other two are connecting with others and contributing to the lives of people around you. “Those are the cores of vitality, and the core pathways to enhance your everyday resilience,” Dr. Boardman says.
The “Beverly Hills 90210” star took to her Instagram story this week to further show her fans and loved ones how strong she is and the positive outlook she has on life no matter what challenges are thrown her way – by sharing a graphic featuring the words of famous Canadian poet Rupi Kaur.
It also comes after she filed for divorce from her husband, Kurt Iswarienko, after 11 years of marriage.
The encouraging words and creative illustration was a post from Kaur’s social media page, which was posted a few days ago.
Kaur, known on Instagram as @rupikaur_, wrote alongside the graphic, “maybe failure is a mindset
and you stepped into it when a few things didn't work out. maybe you think something was stolen from youit's fatal to believe it. but for a moment could you tell yourself a different story?
“go from victim to warrior there are many who tried and failed and got up a hundred times to try again
and got to where they wanted. believe nothing is over everything is beginning you've got to have the audacity to believe you deserve your biggest dreams.
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“you've got to move with the confidence of knowing it be entitled as hell about it be brazen there is always a road that leads to glory don't quit just yet.”
Kaur’s well-written words were from her June 27, 2023, morning journal entry. She also noted the poem was from her book collection, book 3 “Home Body.”
Shannen Doherty’s Cancer Battle
Shannen Doherty first received a breast cancer diagnosis in 2015 after she discovered a lump in her breast. For treatments the first time around, she underwent hormone therapy, a single mastectomy (the removal of all breast tissue from one breast), chemotherapy and radiation.
Then in 2017, Doherty was deemed to be in remission, however, the cancer returned just two years later in 2019.
This time, her diagnosis was metastatic, or stage four, breast cancer.
There is technically no cure for metastatic breast cancer, but that doesn't mean people can't live good, long lives with this stage of disease, thanks to hormone therapy, chemotherapy, targeted drugs and immunotherapy, as well as a combination of treatments.
"With advanced disease, the goal of treatment is to keep you as stable as possible, slow the tumor growth and improve your quality of life," SurvivorNet advisor Dr. Elizabeth Comen, an oncologist with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, said about metastatic breast cancer management.
"I treat women day in and day out who have metastatic breast cancer, and I see the fear in their eyes, and I also see the hope in their eyes. And I share in that hope. Why do I share in that hope? Because I have so many patients who are living with their cancer… It isn't just about living, but living well.”
Doherty took to Instagram last month to recap how her cancer fight is going. She underwent her first round of radiation to her head on Jan. 12, 2023, followed by brain surgery to remove and biopsy a tumor on Jan. 16, 2023. The surgery she underwent is called a craniotomy.
"It's a procedure to cut out a tumor and it can be metastasized or a tumor that started someplace else like the breasts and went to the brain especially if the tumor is causing symptoms or if it's large," Dr. Kimberly Hoang, a board-certified neurosurgeon at Emory University School of Medicine, explained.
Several neurosurgeons tell SurvivorNet that the procedure can allow patients with cancer in their brain to live longer, more vibrant lives, and this appears to be the case with Doherty seen smiling this week.
"A couple of decades ago, to have a brain metastasis was a very bad prognosis for patients. They didn't live for more than a couple of months, so it was a very terminal thing. Thanks to a lot of advancements in microsurgery we do and radiation…patients are living longer," Dr. Hoang said.
The Pathways To Resilience
Challenging oneself can actually help people facing cancer, chronic disease, or other problems to develop resilience, which is an essential coping tool.
That process of pushing oneself to try new things is one of the "three wellsprings of vitality," according to Dr. Samantha Boardman. The other two are connecting with others and contributing to the lives of people around you.
"Those are the cores of vitality, and the core pathways to enhance your everyday resilience," Dr. Boardman explains.
Mental Health Understanding the Three Wellsprings of Vitality
These pathways can help someone develop the strength needed to survive or manage a difficult situation, but they all come back to having a positive outlook.
According to Dr. Boardman, these three wellsprings of vitality are:
- Connecting. This involves how you're connecting with others and having meaningful interactions. It involves being a good listener and being engaged with the people around you who you care about.
- Contribution. How are you adding value to the people around you? Are you helping them in ways that feel meaningful to them? Basically, this entails contributing/engaging with others in a meaningful way.
- Feeling challenged. Being "positively challenged" could involve learning something new (perhaps by taking a new class or reading an interesting book) and expanding your mind in some way.
"Those are the cores of vitality, and the core pathways to enhance your everyday resilience," Dr. Boardman said.
More Stories of Resilience
Shannen Doherty is an amazing example of resilience. Sometimes hearing stories like hers can help people faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges, cancer or otherwise, move forward with bravery and strength.
And if inspiration is what you need, SurvivorNet has you covered. Time after time, we get to get to share stories of resilience because there's no shortage of brave cancer warriors holding onto hope in the face of adversity and achieving amazing things.
Charged The Eduardo Garcia Story is an award-winning SurvivorNetTV documentary following chef Eduardo Garcia's incredible journey overcoming testicular cancer.
SurvivorNetTV Presents: 'Charged' Setbacks Help Chef Discover Meaning and Connection
Garcia was on a hunting and fishing trip through the Montana backcountry in 2011 when he stumbled upon what he thought were the remains of a bear in a tin can that ended up being an old electrical junction box. When he attempted to remove its claw with his knife, he received an extremely severe electrical shock of 2400 volts. He lost an arm and nearly his life.
But his health struggles didn't end there. At the hospital, doctors also found that Garcia had testicular cancer. He needed to start chemotherapy immediately before beginning reconstructive surgeries.
Thankfully, Garcia beat the disease and has since returned to cooking up some delectable eats using a prosthetic arm. He's a true warrior at heart who's happy to be in remission and grateful for the people who helped to get him there.
"Everyone that has encouraged me, and supported me, and forgiven me, and held me accountable has brought me to today and how I make my life moving forward," he said.
Another inspiring cancer warrior SurvivorNet has gotten to know is Lilly Bumpus. She's a pediatric cancer survivor who was born with Ewing sarcoma, a rare type of bone cancer that is often found in children and young adults.
And last, but certainly not least, best-selling author Alex Echols is yet another cancer warrior whose story has enthralled and moved us. He is a late-stage lymphoma survivor who, as humble as can be, credits his resilience to his upbringing in a violence-ridden neighborhood he's since left.
His treatment included high-dose chemotherapy followed by a bone marrow transplant, also known as a stem cell transplant not an easy journey by any means. But through it all, Echols remained optimistic as ever.
“Even during some of the most challenging days and nights, when I didn't have any energy, I looked for things to be grateful for,” he said. “I've always felt like I've been an optimist my entire life, and I've always seen things as the glass half full.”
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Now, he's on the other side of his cancer journey and sharing what he's learned with the world through his work. He's an emotional intelligence leadership-based trainer and the bestselling co-author of “The Two-Week Notice: How to Discover Your Passion, Quit Your Job + Impact Our World.”
Dr. Zuri Murrell, an oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, says positivity plays a role in role in survival rates when it comes to cancer patients.
"I'm pretty good at telling what kind of patient are going to still have this attitude and probably going to live the longest, even with bad, bad disease. And those are patients who, they have gratitude in life," he told SurvivorNet.
So whether you're faced with cancer, some other disease, a disability or any other type of adversity, remember that while you can't control the obstacles and uncertainties of life, you can control how you respond to them.
SurvivorNetTV Presents: Resilient Learning to Overcome
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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