For those wondering just how dire of a condition Shannen Doherty finds herself in at the moment, following a diagnosis of stage IV breast cancer, the actress herself has come right out and said it.
She’s dying.
On Tuesday morning, Doherty fought back tears during an appearance on Good Morning America and told viewers that her cancer had returned.
She had previously announced its remission in 2017.
Doherty said during this emotional interview that she chose to go public with the awful news because she knew it was “going to come out in a matter of days or a week," adding:
"I’d rather people hear it from me.
"I don’t want it to be twisted. I don’t want it to be a court document. I want it to be real and authentic. And I want to control the narrative. I want people to know from me. I just didn’t want them to know yet."
What, exactly, did she mean?
Doherty has filed a lawsuit against State Farm in which the veteran acress claims she’s been forced to pay out of pocket costs for repairs to her home and to her belongings after they were damaged during the Woolsey Fire in 2018.
How is this related to the star’s cancer diagnosis?
Because court documents obtained by E! News and TMZ revealed that Doherty’s lawyers state the following as part of this legal battle:
"She is dying of stage 4 terminal cancer."
It’s true that this is the final and most serious stage of cancer.
Many people may have already realized the severity of Doherty’s illness as soon as they read excerpts from her GMA sit-down yesterday.
However, seeing Shannen’s representatives say this explicitly is still jarring.
"Instead of living out her remaining years peacefully in her home, Ms. Doherty remains displaced and battling with her insurance company," the attorneys continue in their filing.
"I don’t think that I’ve processed it," Doherty told Amy Robach during their interview, adding:
"It’s a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways. I definitely have days where I say, ‘Why me?’ And then I go, ‘Well, why not me? Who else besides me deserves this?’ None of us do."
In April 2017, following a lengthy public battle against the disease, Doherty announced she was in remission.
Sadly, though, she had also stated around this time that "cancer is forever," and now she is proof that it never truly goes away.
Doherty also noted that she filmed the reboot of Beverly Hills, 90210 shortly after receiving her diagnosis — and soon after the death Luke Perry in March of 2019.
"It was so weird for me to be diagnosed and then somebody who was seemingly healthy to go first," the star said of Perry.
"It was really shocking and the least I could do to honor him was do that show. I still haven’t done enough in my opinion."
She added:
"It’s a hard one because I thought when I finally do come out I would have worked and worked 16 hours a day and people can look at that and say, ‘Oh my God, she can work and other people with stage 4 can work.’
"Our life doesn’t end the minute we get that diagnosis.
"We still have some living to do."
State Farm, meanwhile, has alleged in court documents obtained by ABC News that it paid nearly $1.1 million to clean and repair Doherty’s house and provided temporary housing and furniture rental in the interim.
“We empathize with Ms. Doherty’s health issues and wish her a full recovery,” the company said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday.
“We strongly believe we have upheld our commitment to our customer and have paid what we owe on this claim. We are prepared to defend our position in court.”
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