The 43-year-old “X-Men” star said she has undergone four surgeries in the past 10 months, including a double mastectomy performed 30 days after her biopsy.
US Actress Olivia Munn Shares Breast Cancer Diagnosis, Reveals she had Double Mastectomy
US actress Olivia Munn has revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and that she has undergone four operations in the past 10 months.
Munn said Wednesday in an Instagram post that her surgeries had included a double mastectomy and that she was diagnosed with the disease in April 2023
In the post, the 43-year-old “X-Men: Apocalypse” actress shared several photos and a video of her in the hospital, as well as a lengthy statement detailing all she had been through since receiving the news.
“I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I hope by sharing this it will help others find comfort, inspiration, and support on their own journey,” she captioned the post.
In her statement, Munn began: “In February of 2023, in an effort to be proactive about my health, I took a genetic test that checks for 90 different cancer genes.”
“I tested negative for all, including BRCA (the most well-known breast cancer gene). My sister Sara had just tested negative as well. We called each other and high-fived over the phone. That same winter I also had a normal mammogram. Two months later, I was diagnosed with breast cancer,” she wrote.
Munn said the cancer, known as Luminal B, was “aggressive” and “fast moving”, but she was “lucky” because it was caught early enough for her to have options.
The “Newsroom” actress said she has undergone four surgeries in the past 10 months, including a double mastectomy performed 30 days after her biopsy.
She said there have also been “so many days spent in bed” and that she has “learned more about cancer, cancer treatment, and hormones than I ever could have imagined.” She added: “Surprisingly, I’ve only cried twice. I guess I haven’t felt like there was time to cry.”
The actress said she decided to keep her cancer battle private because she “needed to catch my breath and get through some of the hardest parts before sharing” the news.
Munn credited her OB-GYN, Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi, for helping to save her life. According to her, Aliabadi detected her cancer by opting to calculate her “Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score” which she said “looked at factors like my age, familial breast cancer history, and the fact I had my first child after the age of 30.”
Munn ended her post by thanking her friends and family for their support, including her partner comedian John Mulaney with whom she shares a two-year-old son named Malcolm.
Mulaney took to the comments of Munn’s post to support her after she made the announcement. He wrote: “Thank you for fighting so hard to be here for us. Malc and I adore you.”