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Sunday, May 17, 2009

charlie's angels battle with cancer


Back in the 1970s, "Charlie's Angels" co-stars Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson grabbed a TV audience's attention with their flowing locks, good looks and charisma.

Today, still on a mission, they are still making headlines, but for different reasons.

It turns out the three beauties had more in common than they bargained for - a cancer diagnosis.

Fawcett, 62, who is currently battling anal cancer, which has spread to her liver, and Smith, 61, and Jackson, 59, who both won their battles with breast cancer, know what it's like to have their privacy invaded while undergoing treatment.

Entrenched in a media frenzy over 2 1/2 years, Fawcett spoke out - for the first time since her 2006 dignosis.

She blasted the National Enquirer for leaking information from her medical records and the UCLA Medical Center for failing to protect them, in a May 11 Los Angeles Times article.

"It's much easier to go through something and deal with it without being under a microscope," Fawcett told the L.A. Times. "It was stressful. I was terrified of getting the chemo. It's not pleasant. And the radiation is not pleasant."

Like Fawcett, Smith had a story sold to the tabloids about her breast cancer diagnosis in 2002.
When battling cancer, Smith says to "enlighten yourself" and understand that "everybody's situation is totally different."

"You want to put yourself in the hands of a doctor you trust and believe in, that informs you about everything to do with your particular case," she explained. "Certainly being a breast cancer survivor, I say yearly mammograms, self-examination certainly after 40 if there is a family history before. Early detection is key to a good prognosis - so that's a must."

Since her breast cancer diagnosis, Smith has changed her approach to life and attributes her good health and good looks to "clean living" and a low-fat diet.

"You become aware of what you put into your body after you have something like breast cancer, but I am married to a pediatric heart surgeon, so of course I eat a low-fat diet, I exercise and I don't smoke," she said.

Smith returned to her "Charlie's Angels" roots in 2004, when she made a cameo in "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle."