'Baywatch' star Nicole Eggert missed warning signs of breast cancer
"Baywatch" star Nicole Eggert recalled the warning signs that she missed ahead of receiving her breast cancer diagnosis.
The 52-year-old actress was diagnosed with stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer in December 2023. Eggert initially believed the symptoms she had been experiencing were due to menopause.
During an interview with Fox News Digital, Eggert shared the clues that she overlooked before learning of her diagnosis.
"I went for my yearly mammograms and my ultrasounds. I have dense breast tissue. So I was doing what I was supposed to be doing," the "Who's the Boss" alum explained.
She continued, "One thing I think back on is that suddenly my bra size — and this is something that recently kind of dawned on me — my bra kept moving and was fitting a little bit lopsided for a long time.
"What I thought was, you know, our breast tissue is always growing and changing and as women, our breasts move, and gravity hits and all that. So, I kind of chalked it up to that," she added. "And what was actually happening is that the tumor was taking up more space."
"The mass was making that breast bigger. So that's why my bra was not fitting properly. That was a clue that I easily overlooked because boobs are weird like that. It's like feet, they're not always the same."
WATCH: ‘BAYWATCH’ STAR NICOLE EGGERT SHARES BREAST CANCER WARNING SIGNS SHE MISSED AHEAD OF DIAGNOSIS
Eggert said she had also experienced "really serious" unexplained weight gain — another sign of her underlying illness.
"I was at my ideal weight, and I was holding strong, and I was feeling really good," she recalled. "And then, all of a sudden, no matter what I was doing, I was gaining [weight]. Turns out it was the estrogen. I was gaining all this weight."
According to the Cleveland Clinic, most cribriform carcinoma breast cancer cases are estrogen receptor-positive, occurring when "high levels of estrogen in breast cancer cells help cancer grow and spread."
WATCH: ‘BAYWATCH’ STAR NICOLE EGGERT SHARES HOW HER BREAST CANCER BATTLE AFFECTS DAUGHTER KEEGAN, 12
Eggert said that she also began experiencing pain in her breast, which prompted her to conduct a self-exam.
"And then the final [sign] was I felt throbbing in that area," she recalled. "And so I went ahead and did the self-exam as soon as I felt the throbbing. And I found it. And it was this moment of like, ‘How did I not know that was there?’ So, those were my signs."
While speaking with Fox News Digital, the California native emphasized the importance of performing routine self-exams. According to studies conducted by the National Institutes of Health, approximately 25% of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer discovered the cancer through self-examination.
"I was not doing self-exams. So I want to stress to women and men to do the self-exams. Feel yourself up. Get to know your girls. If I had been doing that, I would have found it much sooner. So, that was one that I was really kicking myself for," Eggert said.
"Not that we would necessarily put all of these [signs] together, but if you do your self-exams, I think that that's your best bet," she added.
After receiving her diagnosis, Eggert underwent a mastectomy. The actress completed chemotherapy earlier this year and recently started her radiation therapy.
In an Instagram video shared on November 20, Eggert explained that she had gone in for a CT scan to map placement for radiation treatments, and received small tattoos in the process.
"OK, so I just got out of my CT scan, mapping — as they call it — for my radiation treatment, and when they said they were gonna tattoo me, I didn’t realize it was actual, real tattoos, so I was tatted!" she said.
"And it’s minor, it’s nothing but dots, but boy, every step of this process is never gonna let you forget it, there’s just always going to be a constant reminder," Eggert continued, as her voice broke, and she began to tear up.
She was able to laugh off some of the stress, joking, "So, yeah, I have tattoos, my mom’s going to be really proud of my neck tattoo, but that’s OK, that’s OK."
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While speaking with Fox News Digital, Eggert explained that the next steps in her treatment process include a second mastectomy and breast reconstruction.
Following those surgeries, Eggert will either undergo a hysterotomy or begin hormone therapy, which would require a monthly estrogen-blocker injection for the next ten years in addition to the two oral medications that she will need to take for the next five years.
"There's a lot that goes into this," she explained. "The mastectomy is strange. I kind of went into it thinking they were just going to remove the breast tissue, and you recover from stitches and scars and like, that's it. But there's so much more to it, because they cut through so many nerves. So that sensation and getting used to that is very bizarre."
‘BAYWATCH’ STAR NICOLE EGGERT DEBUTS SHAVED HEAD AFTER CANCER DIAGNOSIS
"And then also the lymph node removal is much more painful than the mastectomy," she continued. "Much more complicated and affects the body much more, so I wasn't really prepared for that, because they didn't mention that they removed lymph nodes."
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"It's something I had to figure out on my own," Eggert added. "You know, from my bed going, ‘What is wrong with me?’ And it's the discovery of all of this and then figuring out solutions that work for my body and trying everything nonstop until something."
"It's been strange, but the lymphatic system is miraculous. It's resilient, and it can really back up on you and feel horrible — like tremendous pain. But then once you get it moving, and you work with it, and you understand it, it fixes itself quite easily. So, all these things I'm learning."
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Eggert said that becoming knowledgeable about her cancer and treatments had been an important part of her cancer journey.
"Another part of my coping mechanism was to immerse myself and educate myself on what the processes are," she said. "A lot of people don't, and I respect that, too. They just go through the motions and do what the doctors say. But I was very much about ‘How can I help my body along?’ You know, ‘What can I do?’ Because giving myself something to do helps me from sitting there stressing out and freaking out."
The former "Charles in Charge" star told Fox News Digital that her love for her children had sustained her throughout the difficult process. Eggert shares daughter Dilyn, 25, with actor Justin Herwick. She is also mother to daughter Keegan, 12, whose father she has never publicly revealed.
WATCH: ‘BAYWATCH’ STAR NICOLE EGGERT ON HOW LOVE FOR HER CHILDREN MOTIVATES HER IN BREAST CANCER BATTLE
"I don't want to see them hurt," she said. "That hurts me more than anything, is to think of them in pain or to think of them losing me or being hurt in any way. It hurts us tenfold. And so that's what it is. It's figuring this out and fighting as hard as I can so that my kids have a mom."
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In a January interview with People magazine, Eggert, whose parents both battled cancer, shared that not being there for her daughters was her "biggest fear."
"I have a 12-year-old at home where I'm the only caregiver. I have no family. I have nothing," she said. "It immediately made me realize, there's just no succumbing to this. This is something I have to get through. This is something that I have to beat. She needs me more than anything and anybody,"
During her interview with Fox News Digital, Eggert shared that Keegan had stayed "very positive" through her mother's cancer battle.
"In her mind, I don't think she could comprehend that I wouldn't be here. So, there [are] no options," she said with a laugh. "It's, 'You're all I got, Mom. We got to figure this out.'"
Eggert explained that she had tried to shield Keegan as much as possible from the "ugly side" of her treatment.
"When I was really sick and going through chemo, she would go away for the weekend with friends. I always made sure she had plans and was doing some things so that on those really dark days, she's not around," she said.
"And as parents do, I cry in the shower, and I cry when she's not home," Eggert said. "And you know, of course, there have been some instances, but that's only natural, and that's only human."
"And she just is really a bright, shining light through it all and really keeps me going and really gives me the strength to fight."
Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Stanton contributed to this report.