'Grey's Anatomy' Star Kate Walsh Gives Health Update Following Brain Tumor Diagnosis

Kate Walsh worried fans when she first revealed her now-removed brain tumor, but she has taken steps to prevent another health scare like that from happening.

The actress, best known as Dr. Addison Montgomery on Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice, spoke with TODAY about her 2015 brain tumor, which she did not reveal until 2017.

"In 2015, I was diagnosed with -- thank God a benign -- meningioma brain tumor, which was successfully removed and I recovered from," Walsh said. "And since then I have definitely changed my lifestyle and my health goals."

The main change she cites is the incorporation of protein into her diet, which she does by drinking protein shakes.

"Protein shakes became, post-brain surgery, a huge, huge part of my diet, making sure that I get enough protein," she said.

Walsh, who now stars on 13 Reasons Why, was diagnosed with a brain tumor the size of a lemon in June 2015. She only discovered the condition after she began experiencing exhaustion and a habit of favoring the right side of her body.

"I got an MRI and thank God I did, because it turned out I had a very sizable brain tumor in my left frontal lobe. And three days later I was in surgery having it removed," Walsh told Cosmopolitan. "She starts to say, 'Well, it looks like you have a very sizable brain tumor' — and I just left my body. My assistant had driven me there, and I had to go get her so that she could take notes, because I was gone. It was never anything I would have imagined."

Luckily for Walsh, the tumor was discovered to be benign during surgery.

She attributed her lack of foresight into her neglect of receiving medical checkups. She apparently tried to figure the exhaustion problem out herself before seeking treatment.

"We're all so socialized to try to self-diagnose, like 'I'll change my workout, I'll change my diet,'" Walsh said. "I was not one to go see doctors very often, other than for my annual OB-GYN appointment. So for me, it was a really big wakeup call to do annual check-ups."

Walsh can currently be seen on 13 Reasons Why, which is currently streaming on Netflix. A second season of the show is expected to be released soon.

Photo Credit: Netflix / Beth Dubber