Marcia Cross, 57, aims to put an end to the stigma surrounding a rare form of cancer that she experienced. The Desperate Housewives favourite first informed fans she was in recovery following a battle with anal cancer last year. The actress, who is famous for playing Bree Van de Kamp in the ABC series, is now speaking out on the rare disease. In a recent interview with People Magazine, she said: “I want to help put a dent in the stigma around anal cancer.
“I’ve read a lot of cancer-survivor stories, and many people, women especially, were too embarrassed to say what kind of cancer they had.”
She went on to highlight the particular element of distress that anal cancer sufferers feel, explaining: “There is a lot of shame about it. I want that to stop.”
Marcia broke the news of her cancer diagnosis on Instagram to her 152K followers back in September by posting a photo of herself showing her hair growing back after treatment.
The star captioned the post: “So grateful and happy to be alive but sad that my hair fell out and is about 1 inch long now and looks cra cra.
“Anyone else have #hairloss due to #cancer? Talk to me. I feel you. Xxoo m.”
Some of Marcia’s followers became worried about her initial announcement and wondered whether she was still suffering from the disease.
She was then prompted to clarify the situation in a new image in which she apologised: “I am so sorry my post wasn’t clear. I am POST cancer. All good now.”
Marcia also took the time to address questions from fans in a follow-up post on the social media platform, which read: “After posting a picture of myself here and uttering the words #cancer and #hairloss I felt liberated, deliriously free and completely me.
“How or why this simple act gave me such a powerful lift I did not question, but I thanked God or whatever gave me the internal push to move forward and expose myself.”
She eventually revealed specific details about her diagnosis, writing: “On that note, if you were wondering, I had #analcancer. I know, right?!”
Fans of the courageous actress immediately flocked to the comments section of her post to share their support.
One admirer who was personally affected by the disease told the star: “Marcia, I am HAPPY you have survived this insidious disease! I fought Anal Rectal Squamous Carcinoma Stage 2 in 2011.”
Another added: “Congrats on getting through treatment. Recently passed my 5 year AC cancerversary!”
In a recent update, Marcia shared a selfie in a green beanie hat featuring the hashtags: “#healthy #happy #grateful.”
The NHS describes anal cancer as a rare type of cancer that affects the end of the bowel.
The website confirms that about 1,300 people are diagnosed with it in the UK each year.
The disease is usually treated with chemoradiation, a combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, or surgery by removing a tumour or larger section of the bowel.