Valerie Harper Clears Up Rumors About Her Cancer

Actress Valerie Harper wants to set the record straight about a recent report saying she was cancer-free.
 
Harper gave an interview with Closer Weekly in which she shared good news about her battle with cancer and reportedly revealed she was "absolutely cancer-free." That isn’t exactly the case.

The magazine is now letting the TV star explain the quote. "I want to thank Closer Weekly for giving me a chance to clarify my story and, more importantly, to address the headline which states that I am cancer-free. I am not cancer-free.”

Valerie continued, "As I have stated on many occasions, I have Leptomeningeal Carcinomatosis (Lepto), lung cancer that has traveled to the meninges around my brain. While speaking to the reporter for Closer Weekly, I was relaying a story where my doctor had told me that in his 30-year practice, I was the only Lepto patient he has seen without other cancers already present.”
 
She added, "I had just had my yearly full-body scan to determine if this sneaky cancer had migrated to other parts of my body. Therefore, in completing that part of the story, I told the reporter with excitement that I was cancer-free, but what I meant to say was that my full body scan revealed that I was still thankfully cancer-free.”
 
Harper concluded, "What all parties want to be made clear now is that while the Lepto has not spread, I am still not cured. I am a cancer patient, and I continue to fight with the hope that a cure may be just around the corner. I am grateful to my fans that I am in their thoughts and prayers. That support gives me great hope."
 
Harper also spoke with "Extra's" AJ Calloway about her health and gave her advice to individuals dealing with cancer.