Shannen Doherty Opens Up About Having a Tumor Removed from Her Head

Shannen Doherty, who is battling stage 4 breast cancer, is sharing her journey on Instagram.

In her latest post, the “90210” alum opened up about having surgery on January 16, 2023.

Alongside a video of her ahead of the operation, she wrote, “I had a tumor in my head they wanted to remove and also biopsy. I am clearly trying to be brave but I am petrified. The fear was overwhelming to me.”

She added, “Scared of all possible bad outcomes, worried about leaving my mom and how that would impact her. Worried that I would come out of surgery not me anymore. This is what cancer can look like.”

Last week, Shannen shared that it was in January that she learned she had brain metastases. This means the cancer has spread to her brain.

She posted a video along with the message, “On January 5th, my ct scan showed Mets in my brain… January 12, the first round of radiation took place. My fear is obvious. I am extremely claustrophobic and there was a lot going on in my life. I am fortunate as I have great doctors like Dr Amin Mirahdi and the amazing techs at cedar sinai. But that fear…. The turmoil….. the timing of it all…. This is what cancer can look like.”

On June 5 she shared a video of herself being fitted for the mask she had to wear during radiation treatment. She included the caption, “January 9, 2023.”

The radiation treatments may have started around the same time as her split with husband Kurt Iswarienko.

She filed for divorce from Kurt in April, and according to court docs obtained by TMZ, they separated in January.

As for her cancer battle, Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, but went into remission. She revealed in 2017 that the cancer had returned.

In 2019, she told “Extra’s” Renee Bargh, “I'm feeling really good right now,” adding that her illness changed her outlook. “I learned so much about myself. I learned so much about the world and the people in it. You learn to be soft, and you still learn to cut through the B.S. and get straight to the point because you're thinking for the rest of your life time is precious, time is short and you don't want to waste it, and I think that's something that is really beautiful. You really learn to appreciate the moments that need to be appreciated.”

In 2020, when she learned of the stage 4 diagnosis, she told ABC News, “It's going to come out in a matter of days or a week that I'm stage 4. So my cancer came back, and that's why I'm here. I don't think I've processed it. It's a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways.”