Olivia Munn, pictured last month, is opening up about her journey with breast cancer, calling it “terrifying” and detailing how her partner, comedian John Mulaney, has showed his support.
Olivia Munn is opening up about her breast cancer diagnosis.
Munn got emotionally candid about “terrifying” fear from her health journey and receiving support from her partner, comedian John Mulaney, in a People magazine exclusive published Wednesday.
“You realize cancer doesn’t care who you are; it doesn’t care if you have a baby or if you don’t have time,” Munn told the outfit. “It comes at you, and you have no choice but to face it head-on.”
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Munn, a mom to Malcolm, her 2-year-old son with Mulaney, was diagnosed weeks before she was set to start shooting a new sci-fi film in Germany.
“I was not someone who obsessed over death or was afraid of it in any way,” the actress told the outlet, but noted that “having a little baby at home made everything much more terrifying.”
“The Newsroom” alum, 43, first revealed her diagnosis in a candid Instagram post last month, telling fans that she had underwent four surgeries over the past 10 months and spent “so many days” in bed that she couldn’t “even count.”
Olivia Munn reveals breast cancer diagnosis, underwent double mastectomy
How Olivia Munn found out she had breast cancer: ‘It was a lot tougher than I expected’
In the People article, Munn said she first found out about signs of cancer during an appointment for her yearly Pap smear. Munn’s OB-GYN Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi asked the actress about her lifetime breast cancer risk score, which she said she did not know.
Her doctor and “SHE MD” Podcast used a free online tool to figure out her score, which utilizes information including age of first period to family history of breast cancer to conduct a score. Aliabadi ordered an MRI when Munn’s score returned at 37.3% — any score above 20% is deemed high-risk. The imaging showed a spot in Munn’s right breast, which she told People was “just a hairline away from my lymph nodes.”
An ultrasound revealed two additional tumors in her right breast and later, her original MRI led to a biopsy which established there was cancer in the left breast, too. Her medical team advised her to undergo a double mastectomy, a surgical procedure which removes both breasts, during which doctors found a small section of ductal carcinoma in situ, an early form of breast cancer.
“There’s so much information, and you’re making these huge decisions for the rest of your life. I really tried to be prepared, but the truth is that nothing could prepare me for what I would feel like, what it would look like and how I would handle it emotionally,” Munn said. “It was a lot tougher than I expected.”
She also told the outlet that she chose to “go smaller” when it came to breast reconstruction. Though she has not yet undergone chemotherapy or radiation, she’s started hormone suppression therapy as a preventative step, which has caused medically induced menopause with symptoms including “thinking it’s hot, my hair is thinning, and I’m tired a lot.”
Olivia Munn originally kept breast cancer journey ‘private’ with support from partner John Mulaney
Munn chose to keep her breast cancer diagnosis from the public eye for as long as possible before sharing her health journey with the world last month.
“Keeping it private for as long as I did allowed me time to fight without any outside noise at all,” she told People.
Munn, who is famously mum about her relationship with comedian John Mulaney, said “it would’ve felt like climbing an iceberg” without her partner.
“I don’t think he had a moment to himself, between being an incredibly hands-on father and going to and from the hospital, taking Malcolm to the park, putting him to nap, driving to Cedars-Sinai (Medical Center), hanging out with me, going home, putting Malcolm to bed, coming back to me — and he did it all happily,” Munn recalled.
She added that getting “to be here” for her son has been a source of strength through her battle with breast cancer.
“When I’m with him, it’s the only time my brain doesn’t think about being sick. I’m just so happy with him and it puts a lot of stuff into perspective because if my body changes, I’m still his mom,” Munn said. “If I have hot flashes, I’m still his mom. If I lose my hair, I’m still his mom. That’s really what matters the most to me.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Olivia Munn details breast cancer journey, including 4 surgeries in 10 months
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