Hallmark star Alicia Witt shared the news on social media that she was diagnosed with breast cancer. The 46-year-old actress, author, and musician said she recently underwent a unilateral mastectomy, following six rounds of chemotherapy at the end of 2021.
The news was a surprise, as Witt was in the public eye during her treatment. In December, her parents were discovered dead in their Massachusetts home. Despite making statements on social media about their death, Witt never mentioned her cancer diagnosis.
“i did not want to share this journey until i received the good news,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “i needed to spend every bit of my energy focused on healing. a handful of closest soul companions were my confidantes, my lifeline and my refuge. as i’ve told them — i have no idea how i would have made it through without them.”
In an Instagram post, Witt called the experience a blessing.
“These last six months have been the absolute strangest i could ever have imagined,” she wrote. “And amidst this, the biggest of blessings.”
Alicia Witt reveals breast cancer diagnosis
According to Witt, last fall doctors removed a lump from her breast and performed a biopsy.
“A lump i was told by multiple practitioners, including the one who performed my biopsy, was ‘likely’ nothing to worry about — more on that, and the anomalies we need to look out for, in a later post,” she wrote.
On November 4, she received a call from her doctor.
“Everything else came to a grinding halt as i began a crash course on all i would need to learn,” she said.
She began chemotherapy on December 1, then had a unilateral mastectomy. According to her post, there is no trace of the disease left.
Great-grandmother Loretta
Witt shared that her great-grandmother died from breast cancer.
“thinking of my grandma loretta, my dad’s mom, who did not survive her diagnosis, leaving me just one beautiful memory of her beaming her beautiful smile at me when i was 3. thinking, based on what i know of her experience (although this is not yet proven to be a genetic form) she likely had the same type. feeling angels all around. grateful beyond grateful for science and research.”
Friends of the actress wrote supportive comments on her post.
“You are a warrior and will help so many by sharing your story. I’m sending you all my love,” wrote Lacey Chabert.
About Witt
A classically trained pianist, Alicia Witt made her onscreen debut in the 1984 movie Dune. She went on to star in the CBS series Cybill and had parts on The Sopranos, Friday Night Lights, and The Walking Dead. She has made several movies for the Hallmark Channel, including A Very Merry Mix-Up (2013), Christmas at Cartwright’s (2014), and Christmas Tree Lane (2020).