Erin Andrews got treated for cervical cancer, was back at work in a few days
Erin Andrews is the host of DWTS, taking over for Brooke Burke Charvet in 2014, and she’s also a sportscaster for Fox Sports. Last year was a tough one for Erin because she went to trial in the case against a stalker who recorded her without her knowledge from an adjacent hotel room in 2008, later releasing nude video of her online. She was awarded $55 million from the stalker and from the Marriott corporation in March. Then, in September she learned she had cervical cancer which would need to be treated immediately. Erin went to work covering a football game, got treated a couple of weeks later, and then went back to work within a week. It sounds like she never took time off to recover, but that’s how she preferred it and she wanted to get right back into the swing of things. By November she was given the all clear from her doctor. Here’s more with Erin, thanks to Sports Illustrated MMQB:
She feels vulnerable in public knowing that people have seen her naked
I know it’s not healthy. It’s something I’m working on. I feel like I have to win every battle. I feel like I have to prove to people that this has hurt me in ways that you probably can’t see.
She wants to help other victims
“[I want to fight] for victims who don’t have the resources I have. There’s somewhere I can fit in here, I just need to figure out where. I want to get in front of Congress; I want to get in front of lawmakers in D.C.; I want to try to strengthen laws. I just need to find the right group to align myself with. I’m making that my project once the Super Bowl is over.”
Football gives her strength
“Football is such a huge part of my life. It helped me get through the trial. On the witness stand, I said being on the field is ‘my happiness, my escape,’ and I truly believe that. I couldn’t wait to return to the sideline.”
She was diagnosed Oct 8, had surgery Oct 11 and was back at work on October 17
“Should I have been standing for a full game five days after surgery? Let’s just say the doctor didn’t recommend that,” Andrews says. “But just as I felt during my trial, sports were my escape. I needed to be with my crew.”
How she dealt with everything
“After the trial everyone kept telling me, ‘You’re so strong, for going through all of this, for holding down a job in football, for being the only woman on the crew. Finally I got to the point where I believed it too. ‘Hey, I have cancer, but dammit, I am strong, and I can do this.’”
Erin had a second surgery on November 1 and was given the all clear by her doctor on November 17. She did not have to do chemotherapy or radiation. I think she’s sharing this now because it’s right before the Super Bowl, she’s well on the other side of it and she’s ready to tell people about it without having the news interfere too much with her job. Plus she used an apt sports metaphor when explaining why she went right back out again. She told her fiance, NHL player Jarret Stoll, “You wouldn’t miss a game. You’d play through any injury, do whatever it takes to get back out there. That’s going to be me.” Her story reminds me of Giuliana Rancic’s breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in that Rancic made it a priority to get back to work right away as that’s what she was determined to do. That’s not for everyone and I don’t want to call it admirable, although it is, so as not to take away from people who rest after treatment, which is also admirable. People deal with health problems in unique ways and there’s no right or wrong way.
People Magazine has more information about cervical cancer, prevention and detection. Pap smears are key and given the fact that the people who run the country are trying to limit our access to basic health care please schedule one soon if you’re due.
Here’s a cute photo of Erin’s engagement night. She got engaged at Disneyland. This is so adorable and gives me the warm fuzzies.
photos credit: WENN, Getty and Erin Andrews/Instagram
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