Ananda Lewis diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer, urges others to get mammograms
Ananda Lewis urges all women to get checked regularly for breast cancer
Ananda Lewis took to Instagram to announce she has stage three breast cancer.
The 47-year-old host released an almost seven-minute video on Thursday detailing her experience with breast cancer. She explained why she kept it a secret from family and friends and why she refused mammograms over the years.
“For a really long time, I have refused mammograms, and that was a mistake,” Lewis said. “I watched my mom get mammograms for almost 30 years almost, and at the end of that, she had breast cancer, and I said, ‘Huh. Radiation exposure for years equals breast cancer. Yeah, I’m going to pass. Thanks anyway.’”
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Lewis then says if she would have received mammograms, her cancer would have been diagnosed earlier.
“If I had done the mammograms from the time they were recommended when I turned 40, they would have caught the tumor in my breast years before I caught it through my own breast exam—self-exam—and thermography,” the former model said.
“And they would have caught it at a place where it was more manageable. Where the treatment of it would have been a little easier. It’s never easier, but I use that word in comparison to what I’m going through now. Instead, what I’m dealing with is stage 3 breast cancer that is in my lymphs. I need you to get your mammograms.”
According to Cancer.com mammograms are a “low-dose x-ray” that helps doctors locate irregularities in breast tissue. They can often detect breast cancer early before a bump can be felt. Lewis says she has been battling cancer for over two years and is seeking treatment.
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“I have been doing 1000 percent alternative and natural protocols and treatments and I have helped this particular condition not spread like wildfire through my body,” said an emotional Lewis. “That’s good news, but it’s not gone, and I still have a lot of work to do. And, I wish I could go back.”
She says she is admitting where she went wrong in hopes of helping someone else.
“Early detection, especially for breast cancer, changes your outcome. It can save their life.”
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