Shannen Doherty, famously known for her role in the television series ‘Beverly Hills, 90210’ and ‘Charmed’ bids farewell to her friends, family and fans on Saturday at her home in California.
She was 53, battling stage 4 breast cancer diagnosed back in 2015. She even opened up about her cancer making a return in 2020 with symptoms such as numbness, fatigue, and loss of appetite, much more.
Credits: The Sun
Who was Shannen Doherty?
If you were a 90s kid or a person who has spent enough of their time in front of the TV flicking through channels you might know who exactly Shannen Doherty was.
The American teen drama, Beverly Hills, 90210 (often referred to as 90210), gave Doherty the fame of being in an influential teen series, where she reprised the role of a newcomer (Brenda), to Beverly Hills with her twin brother, Brandon.
She also returned to the same production (Aaron Spelling Empire) for the series Charmed, co-starring alongside Alyssa Milano and Holly Marie Combs as a pair of three magical sisters.
Even though she portrayed characters who were known to be ‘bad girl’, with glossier lifestyles on screen, the actress was remarked to be a warrior regarding her health and cancer which she fought with braveness.
Doherty’s publicist Leslie Sloane, in an emailed statement, reveals the cause of death to be breast cancer.
Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer back in 2015 when she opened up about her struggles with her ongoing battle with stage 4 breast cancer.
Credits: ELLE/ Kurt Iswarienko
Doherty, with her interview for ELLE, reveals that her breast cancer has made a comeback. She further explained to ELLE that the tumour was likely to spread to her brain, lungs, liver or some other, yet there was hope for Shannen.
Her oncologist, Piro said the cancer was metastatic (Stage 4) by the time which meant the tumour was already spread to her lymph nodes. The doctor also states that Doherty’s treatment would include hormone therapy and medication to stabilise the metastatic disease since the chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery had already failed during the first diagnosis.
She received the news of her cancer in 2015, and in the next year,she shaved her head. Then in 2018, she announced that her disease was in remission. However, in 2020, the cancer was back. In June 2023, Doherty announced that the cancer had spread to her brain and in the following November, she announced that it had spread to her bones.
Shannen and her strength
During Doherty’s interview with ELLE stated that breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women. About 300,000 women have been diagnosed with breast cancer every year, first-hand treatments are usually effective and cure the patient. But with Doherty’s cancer’s rebirth, the treatment was to go unaffected.
After getting diagnosed for the second time, Doherty didn’t give up on her dream of wanting to live her life.
With her cancer returning after 2 years of remission, Doherty continued to go forth with the decision of being a part of the 90210 reboot to honour her former co-star Luke Perry despite her worsened health.
Credits: Getty Images
With her cancer taking a toll on her health, in 2023 she started a podcast, “Let’s Be Clear with Shannen Doherty” where she shared her personal and public life, friendships and relationships and her dreams for her future.
Doherty’s co-stars and friends remember her as a ‘badass’. From director Kevin Smith to ‘Charmed’ co-star Alyssa Milano and ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ actor Jason Priestley took their social media to pay homage to the evergreen pop culture icon, Shannen Doherty.
Cancer survivor, Olivia Munn too expressed her loss while reminiscing about her closing bonding with Doherty.
