Olivia Newton-John revealed that she has been diagnosed with cancer for the third time in three decades.
The 69-year-old announced the news in an interview with Australia’s Channel Seven on Sunday, saying that cancer has returned to her back, where she has a tumor at the base of her spine.
An internationally renowned singer for decades, Newton-John had a breakout role on the big screen in “Grease” (1978). She has battled cancer twice before.
She revealed in the interview for the first time that along with her initial 1992 breast cancer diagnosis, doctors found cancer in her shoulder after she was involved in a car accident in 2013.
When asked if she was scared, Newton-John said, “No, I don’t go there. I’d be lying if I said I never go there. There are moments, I’m human. If I allowed myself to go there, I could easily create that big fear. But my husband’s always there, and he’s there to support me.”
“I believe I will win over it,” she continued. “That’s my goal.”
The interview unveiled that Newton-John is eating healthily and undergoing radiation treatment to treat her cancer and taking cannabis oil for pain relief.
Newton-John said she decided to keep her second bout of cancer to herself.
“The first time I talked about it, and the second time I thought I didn’t really need to share this, it’s not something I need to share with people,” she said. “It’s my life and I decided to keep it to myself.”
Outside of her own battles with cancer, the disease has struck another member of her family: Her sister died six weeks after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer in 2013.
