Blythe Danner is opening up about her year-long battle with oral cancer for the first time. The 79-year-old actress, who lost husband Bruce Paltrow to the same disease in 2002, revealed to PEOPLE that she is in remission after first being diagnosed with adenoid cystic carcinoma, a somewhat rare form of oral cancer, in March 2018.
“Everyone is touched by cancer in some way, but it’s unusual for a couple to have the same cancer,” said Danner, who is mom to Gwyneth Paltrow, 50 and Jake Paltrow, 47. She recalled of her initial diagnosis, “I remember I looked up at heaven and said to Bruce, ‘Are you lonely up there?’ It’s a sneaky disease. But I’m fine and dandy now. And I’m lucky to be alive.”
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Danner noticed something was wrong in 2018 when she “started feeling very woozy,” began “forgetting everything, and felt a lump in her neck similar to where her husband had found his in 1999. After being diagnosed officially with adenoid cystic carcinoma, which often develops in the salivary glands, Danner kept her health news a secret from her children for a “long time.” The Meet the Parents actress explained, “I wanted to forge ahead as a mother, and I didn’t want them to worry.”
Gwyneth told PEOPLE that she was “obviously very shocked” when her mother did share her diagnosis. “It was scary. And it felt really eerie because it was so similar [to my dad’s].” Danner would forge on to undergo three surgeries and several years of treatment, including radiation and chemotherapy. “She went through it with so much grace,” noted Gwyneth. “I was amazed at how strong she was able to be.”
Nowadays, Danner has been enjoying her time with family, noting that “nothing makes me happier than the kids” as she continues her advocacy work with the Oral Cancer Foundation. Looking back on her husband’s death and her own battle with oral cancer, Danner reflected, “I think we’ve all become somehow stronger. It’s a bit of a crapshoot – this disease and this life. But I’ve had a career, great kids and a loving husband. I’m very grateful.”
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NEW YORK CITY – DECEMBER 19: "Toil and Trouble" – Elsbeth is thrown into the world of television after the showrunner of a long-running police procedural is brutally murdered in his office, and although it appears to be the act of a disgruntled fan, she begins to suspect the show's longtime star Regina Coburn (Laurie Metcalf) who yearns for artistic fulfillment. Meanwhile, Judge Crawford (Michael Emerson) continues to be a thorn in Elsbeth's side, on the CBS original series ELSBETH, Thursday, Dec. 19 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs). Pictured (L-R): Carrie Preston as Elsbeth Tascioni and Carra Patterson as Kaya Blanke. (Photo by Michael Parmelee/CBS via Getty Images)
