'Charlie's Angels' star Cheryl Ladd opens up for first time about ‘aggressive’ breast cancer battle
Cheryl Ladd is opening up about her breast cancer diagnosis for the first time.
On Monday, Ladd, 74, got candid about her bout with cancer during an appearance at the PaleyFest 50th anniversary celebration of "Charlie's Angels."
"Mine was an aggressive form," Ladd, who was accompanied by fellow costars Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith, said. "I had wonderful doctors. But I was bald for quite a while. It was a humbling experience."
"I have a wonderful husband. All through it, he was there for me at every turn, and that makes a difference," said Ladd, referring to her husband Brian Russell. "Eventually, I started to get little sprouts of hair. It was like, 'Oh, I'm getting hair!' It was a long, long, hard road. But you just get through. You just get on with it."
Not only do the three women share an unbreakable bond through their experience on the show, but they're all three cancer survivors.
"It just connects you because you know what they’re going through," Smith, who was also diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent radiation treatment in 2002, said during an interview on the "Today Show". "And that’s when I talk about the power of girlfriends."
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When Ladd disclosed her diagnosis to her friends, Smith said she immediately empathized.
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"The first thing I did was send her my wigs," she said during the PaleyFest panel. "She was so brave. She did have a very aggressive form [of cancer]."
"It’s really important to understand and embrace not being afraid of getting a mammogram," Jackson, a two-time breast cancer survivor, added. "Early detection is key. Find it early enough and you’ll probably be all right."
Ladd, Jackson and Smith reunited on Monday to celebrate the show's milestone anniversary and pay tribute to Farrah Fawcett, who appeared as one of the main angels in the first season of the series.
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"Oh, I feel so proud. I feel appreciative. I feel we did something right," Smith told Fox News Digital ahead of the panel. "And I feel I'm still standing here. And life has been interesting. It's been a beautiful journey. Truly, I have two beautiful kids, a great husband, and three granddaughters. So I'm riding high. And you know, I think things are, 'Charlie's Angels' was meant to be. I have no regrets."
In 2021, Ladd opened up to Fox News Digital about her meaningful friendships with her former costars.
"It’s really interesting because when you do something so specific, so iconic and you are in it when it was huge – it is something you can explain to people, but until you’ve done it, it is different," she continued. "We think back often about how crazy that time was. We had to go into restaurants through the back door. We weren’t prepared for how much people would love the show. It was wonderful, but it was wild."
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In 1977, Ladd took on the role of Kris Munroe (the younger sister of Fawcett's character) in the iconic series, which aired until 1981. Ladd, who was chosen by Aaron Spelling to play Fawcett’s younger sister, initially said no to the role. But with enough convincing, she took the plunge – a decision she’s still grateful for.
"It was nerve-wracking!" Ladd admitted about appearing in "Charlie’s Angels."
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"Because the year and season was all about Farrah," she said. "When Farrah decided to leave the show [in 1980], I think it was very shocking for her fans and everyone that loved the show."
Despite achieving fame in Hollywood, Ladd said her faith in God has always played a significant role in her life.
"It has been all of it," she said. "I knew who I was as a young girl. I would climb up the top of the tree and talk to God all the time. It has been an interesting path – a lot of good, a lot of bumps, a lot of tough, learning moments. He [God] was with me the whole time. He lets us trip ourselves so we remember that he is in charge. I think that is a good thing, especially in our youth! When we aren’t exactly thinking everything through."
Fox News Digital's Stephanie Nolasco contributed to this post.