Olivia Munn revealed on Wednesday that she was diagnosed with breast cancer almost a year ago and has since undergone a double mastectomy.
“In February 2023, in an effort to be proactive about my health, I had a genetic test that screens you for 90 different cancer genes,” Munn wrote in a lengthy statement posted to her social media.
“I was negative for all, including BRCA (the best-known breast cancer gene). My sister Sarah had just tested negative. We called each other and got high off the phone. In the same winter I also had a normal mammogram. Two months later I was diagnosed with breast cancer.”
Munn added: “In the last ten months I've had four surgeries, spent so many days in bed I can't even count, and learned more about cancer, cancer treatment and hormones than I could have imagined. Surprisingly, I've only cried twice. I guess I didn't feel like there was time to cry. My focus narrowed and I filed away any emotions I felt would interfere with my ability to remain clear.”
The actress credited her OBGYN for encouraging her to calculate the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score. “I wouldn't have found my cancer for another year — at my next scheduled mammogram” if not for his OBGYN's advice. After calculating her risk score — 37 percent in her lifetime — Munn had an MRI, then an ultrasound, then a biopsy that showed she had Luminal B cancer — “an aggressive, fast-moving cancer” — in both breasts.
Thirty days after the biopsy, she had a double mastectomy, Munn wrote. “I went from feeling completely fine one day, to waking up in a hospital bed after a 10-hour surgery the next.” However, Munn said she was “lucky” to have caught the cancer in time to still have treatment options.
As for why she kept her battle a secret, Munn added, “I've kept the diagnosis and the worry and the recovery and the pain medicine and the paper gowns private. I needed to catch my breath and get through some of the rougher spots before I could share it.”
Munn also thanked her friends, family and team of doctors who helped her throughout her battle, as well as John Mulaney, with whom she has a son named Malcolm. Munn was thankfully well enough to accompany Mulaney to the Oscars last weekend. “Thank you for fighting so hard to be here for us,” Mulaney wrote in the comments of Munn's post. “Malk and I adore you.”
from our partners at https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/olivia-munn-breast-cancer-battle-1234986822/
