Farrah Fawcett confirms that cancer has spread to her liver

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“Charlie’s Angels” icon Farrah Fawcett was hospitalized over the weekend, which prompted speculation that her long battle with anal cancer had taken a turn for the worse. Farrah’s rep confirmed that the star’s cancer has indeed spread to her liver and she was admitted to the hospital to be treated for complications. Reports say that Farrah has been visited by her longtime love, Ryan O’Neil, as well as former “Angels” co-stars Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson. One person who won’t be able to visit her is her son, Redmond – he was arrested on Sunday for narcotics possession. Again.

Farrah Fawcett is being treated for anal cancer that has spread to her liver and has been hospitalized for a complication from a routine treatment, a producer who worked with the actress and her doctor said Monday.

In separate phone interviews with The Associated Press, Fawcett’s producer and her doctor said that Fawcett is in a Los Angeles hospital, recovering from complications from a medical procedure in Germany, and is “not on death’s door,” as the producer put it.

“She had a minor procedure. That procedure led to a small amount of bleeding into a muscle in her abdominal wall,” which created a hematoma _ a sac of blood that caused pressure and pain, said her Los Angeles cancer specialist, Dr. Lawrence Piro. It was “a simple procedure” and a standard one, although Fawcett has also pursued experimental treatments in Germany, he added.

“She’s on the mend and will be going home very shortly,” said her producer, Craig Nevius. “She’s doing fantastic. Her fight goes on. … She’s not going anywhere anytime soon.”

However, confirmation that the cancer had spread to such a distant site was dire news. The 62-year-old “Charlie’s Angels” star was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006, and originally was treated at The Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center with chemotherapy and radiation _ not surgery as some have reported, Nevius said.

She was declared in remission on Feb 2, 2007, but three months later, scans showed “not only had it recurred, it metastasized to her liver,” Nevius said.

The latest treatment in Germany tried to address the cancer’s spread to that organ, he said.

Nevius would not say where in Germany she was being treated, just that it was a clinic affiliated with some hospitals. He also would not give details on her treatments there, but said media reports that she was getting stem cell treatments were false.

“It’s never had anything to do with stem cells,” or alternative treatments such as shark cartilage, coffee enemas or unproven “detoxification” diets, Nevius said.

“It’s much more scientific than that. It’s not a fringe treatment,” he said, and the doctors have “multiple, multiple degrees.”

An upcoming documentary on which Fawcett has worked for several years, “A Wing and a Prayer,” co-produced with Nevius and others, will air on NBC soon and give details, he said.

After the procedure in Germany, Piro said Fawcett flew back to Los Angeles because she was eager to go home. In a statement released earlier, Piro said Fawcett was using a wheelchair because it was painful for her to walk. “That pain, which was coming from the hematoma, had nothing directly to do with the cancer,” Piro said.

“She remains in good spirits with her usual sense of humor,” he added. “She’s been in great shape her whole life and has an incredible resolve and an incredible resilience.”

Nevius said Fawcett is expected to leave the hospital in a few days. He said her support system includes former partner Ryan O’Neal, her father and “Charlie’s Angels” co-stars Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith.

“Let me tell you what she’s not,” Nevius said. “As previously reported by everybody, she’s not unconscious. She is not on death’s door. The family has not gathered to say goodbye.”

Anal cancer is relatively uncommon, but occurs a little more often in women than men. An estimated 5,070 cases were diagnosed in the United States last year, leading to about 680 deaths, according to the American Cancer Society.

Meanwhile, Redmond O’Neal, Fawcett’s son with Ryan O’Neal, was arrested Sunday on suspicion of bringing narcotics into a jail facility and was being held on $25,000 bail.

A deputy at a jail in Castaic, north of Los Angeles, was doing a security sweep of the jail’s parking lot when he stopped the 24-year-old, who acknowledged he was carrying drugs and was apparently at the jail giving a ride to a friend, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said.

[From Huffington Post]

I’m glad to hear that it’s not as dire as originally reported. I hope Farrah pulls through and it able to go home soon – so she can open a can of whup-ass on that punk son of hers! Sounds like he could use some serious parental intervention right about now, and it doesn’t appear that Ryan O’Neil is capable of doing it. Poor Farrah.

Photos: Fame.
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21 Responses to “Farrah Fawcett confirms that cancer has spread to her liver”

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  1. barneslr says:

    I’m sure that no-good son of hers getting arrested over and over again doesn’t help one bit. The last thing someone so sick needs is that kind of added stress.

  2. daisy424 says:

    I saw last night on the news that the cancer had spread and I admit, I felt sick to my stomach. First time I ever saw her was on I Dream of Jeannie.

    Agree Barneslr, like she doesn’t have enough to deal with. Ryan’s kids have alot of problems, he’s a crap absentee father.

  3. Leandra says:

    That son of hers is a piece of work…too bad he’s too old for Brat Camp. So sad about Farrah’s liver cancer. A co-worker of mine had that and they gave her two years. She lasted four, but every case and type of cancer is different.

  4. Anoneemouse says:

    The best medicine for Farrah right now is to leave that deadbeat son of hers in jail where he belongs so he can dry out and stay out of trouble.

  5. OXA says:

    I feel so bad for her, my mother had colorectal cancer that metastasized to her liver, she died 2 months from the day of her diagnosis.

  6. lisa says:

    Spread to the liver…pretty much a death sentence. How awful.

  7. Debbi says:

    Is ‘anal’ cancer the new colo-rectal? I hadn’t heard it called that before.

  8. yadira says:

    Awww, stay strong girl. You’ll be in our prayers. Get better

  9. Allie says:

    I love Farrah! She’s always been such a natural beauty. I hope her son gets his act together, and doesn’t cause anymore pain and grief to the family at this terrible time.
    My thoughts and prayers are with Farrah, and hope she recovers soon.

  10. Hieronymus Grex says:

    wow… just wow 🙁

  11. Gracie says:

    Bummer – once cancer metastasizes, it’s pretty much a done deal. The fact that the organ is ‘distant’ or not has NOTHING to do with the prognosis. So sad – she’s so young… (relatively speaking)

  12. yadira says:

    There is always the possibility of a liver transplant.

  13. heh-heh says:

    As a guy who was young in the 1970s, all I can say is Godspeech, Farrah, and these doctors have been wrong before (Stephen Jay Gould’s cancer prognosis was WAY OFF and he’s been around for years longer than they said he would be.)

  14. heh-heh says:

    Um, that should be Godspeed. As in, Best Wishes.

  15. annie mally says:

    Stop critizing the son..no wonder he is like he is..look at the role models in his life and the violent relationship between his parents, and the different relationships they have had with other partners that was violent as well..poor son I feel sorry for..women its time to be strong and stop being pathedic victims..we have a choice, we are not powerless..

  16. Jen says:

    @annie mally ~ At some point, regardless of the crappy job your parents did, you have to grow the hell up and take responsibility for your actions. You can’t live your whole life as a victim…it’s exhausting and destructive.

  17. paranel says:

    I guess Ryan O’Neal wouldn’t win the father of the year award if he was the last father on earth. All his children have severe drug problem. So sad, I wish Farrah recovers and live to be 90, healthy and happy. Living with cancer is very hard.

  18. rbsesq says:

    Amen, Jen!

  19. Beth Funk says:

    Farrah – I love you, I always have. You are an incredible woman that has been blessed with so many gifts and talents. I am so sorry you are going through this but I am praying so hard for you. Its going to be so awesome to read your book one day – how you fought cancer and won! God bless you sweet lady!!!

  20. Diane says:

    To those of you who are bashing Redmond…yes he’s a druggie but those of us who knew him from the time he was little know that it was his mother and father who introduced him to drugs and they are both big time drug abusers. He never had a chance. Instead of feeling sorry for Farrah, you should feel sorry for him. She was not a good mother…way too narcissistic. That’s not to say that she in any way deserves what has happened to her…no one deserves what has happened to her but neither did Redmond ask for the crappy parents he got.

  21. colo colo says:

    I like them all but if I had to choose, I’d say 3 where womanhood is no longer a pre-existing condition. Jean Colonomos