Olivia Newton-John Opens Up About Living With Stage 4 Cancer
The star of Grease and Xanadu explains how "every day is a gift" while she battles stage-4 breast cancer for the third time.
Unquenchable Gratitude
Musical icon Olivia Newton-John, 70, recently sat down for an interview with 60 Minutes Australia and opened up about her fight with stage 4 breast cancer, explaining that she is "so lucky that I’ve been through this three times and I’m still here. I'm living with it. It’s just reinforced my gratitude."
"We know we’re gonna die at some point and we don’t know when it is. When you’re given a cancer diagnosis or a scary honest diagnosis, you’re suddenly given a possibility of a time limit. The truth is, you could get hit by a truck tomorrow. So every day is a gift, particularly now."
Staying Positive
Newton-John was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992 and then it returned in 2013. In May 2017, when the cancer returned for a third time, doctors discovered that it had metastasized and spread to her bones.
However, Newton-John is still optimistic that she can "win" and that she is "back to full force again." She explains that positivity is key.
"I don’t read statistics. If you believe the statistics, you’re going to make it happen. If somebody tells you, you have six months to live, very possibly you will because you believe that. So for me, psychologically, it’s better not to have any idea of what they expect or what the last person that has what you have lived, so I don’t — I don’t tune in. It’s just better for me."
How She Copes
Newton-John is adamant that she is not a "victim."
"It’s something I’m living with. I see it as something in my body I’m getting rid of. I don’t talk about a battle or a war, because I think that sets up that kind of feeling in your body like you’re battling something strange inside you. I let it go and tell it to leave and talk to my body to heal itself and don’t try to make it that. Because that takes up your whole life and your whole being."
