Shannen Doherty ‘Thankful’ to Be Here on Christmas Amid Cancer Battle, Divorce

Shannen Doherty is looking forward to a “beautiful” next year as a difficult 2023 comes to an end. The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum, 52, opened up about her mindset going into 2024 in the Christmas episode of her podcast, Let’s Be Clear with Shannen Doherty, in which she was joined by her mother, Rosa Doherty.

“This year is about just being incredibly grateful that we’re here and we get to spend time with the people that are by our sides through thick and thin, who don’t walk away, who love us unconditionally, and that have the same beliefs and morals and standards and people who have character,” said Doherty in the podcast episode. “I’m just so thankful really to be here for it.”

The Charmed alum noted how grateful she was that she “even got to schedule my cancer infusions where I would be recovered completely from it for Christmas.” Doherty has been being treated for cancer on and off for nearly a decade, having first been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. In February 2020, she announced that she had been diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer, and in June she shared that the cancer had spread to her brain.

Around the time Doherty had surgery to remove a tumor from her brain in January, the actress split from her husband, Kurt Iswarienko. Three months later, the couple announced their divorce, with Doherty alleging Iswarienko had been cheating on her for a long time. Despite it being a “contentious” year, the Heathers star feels like things have gotten “a lot lighter” and “a lot more positive” as of late.

“For me, it’s been a turbulent year, some massive health struggles, some massive personal struggles, a lot of heartbreak and fear,” she said during Monday’s podcast. “But with all of that, I have found… I was actually saying this to myself the other night, ‘God I think I’m actually starting to live the happiest version of myself.’” With 2023 coming to an end, Doherty said her heart is “opening back up,” and she believes “next year’s going to be beautiful.”