Shannen Doherty best known for Beverly Hills 90210 and Charmed has died, following a long battle with breast cancer, aged 53.
“It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of actress Shannen Doherty. On Saturday, July 13, she lost her battle with cancer after many years of fighting the disease,” Doherty’s longtime publicist Leslie Sloane confirmed.
“The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie. The family asks for their privacy at this time so they can grieve in peace.”
Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 which had spread to her lymph nodes. In 2017, she revealed her breast cancer had returned after going into remission.
“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,” Doherty told Good Morning America. “I don’t think I’ve processed it. It’s a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways.”
Doherty rose to fame as Brenda Walsh on Beverly Hills, 90210, from 1990 – 1994 as the sibling to Jason Priestly’s Brandon. Brenda had a romance with Luke Perry’s ‘bad boy’ Dylan.
She was later cast in Charmed as Prue Halliwell, the oldest of three sisters who are witches alongside Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano from 1998 – 2001.
In 2019, Doherty signed on to join the TV reboot of 90210, once again playing an adult version of the character that made her famous.
Though the actress said she was aware of her diagnosis, she kept it a secret from the cast after the unexpected death of her costar Luke Perry in 2019 .
“It’s so weird for me to be diagnosed and then somebody who was, you know, seemingly healthy to go first,” Doherty said on Good Morning America. “It was really, like, shocking.”
Other credits included Little House on the Prairie, Magnum PI, Highway to Heaven, 21 Jump Street, Our House, Dancing with the Stars, Riverdale, Heathers, Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Mallrats, Night Shift, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and Fortress.
As recently as June 24, she revealed on a podcast that she was gearing up for another round of chemo.
“I start chemo probably a couple of days after this episode is out. I go in for my first round of chemo. And to just be walking into the unknown, I just feel like my life has been unknown for over a year now,” Doherty added. “Between divorce and cancer, it’s like I have no grasp on it and I have no control. And most people who know me know that I’m like a control freak. I like to control things.”
Cancer Council: 13 11 20
Source: People
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