Fawcett Hospitalized For Complication After Routine Treatment Of Cancers Spread to Liver
In separate phone interviews with The Associated Press, Fawcetts producer and her doctor said that Fawcett is in a Los Angeles hospital, recovering from complications from a medical procedure in Germany, and is “not on deaths door,” as the producer put it.
“She had a minor procedure. That procedure led to a small amount of bleeding into a muscle in her abdominal wall,” which created a hematoma – a sac of blood that caused pressure and pain, said her Los Angeles cancer specialist, Dr. Lawrence Piro. It was “a simple procedure” and a standard one, although Fawcett has also pursued experimental treatments in Germany, he added.
“Shes on the mend and will be going home very shortly,” said her producer, Craig Nevius. “Shes doing fantastic. Her fight goes on. … Shes not going anywhere anytime soon.”
However, confirmation that the cancer had spread to such a distant site was dire news. The 62-year-old “Charlies Angels” star was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006, and originally was treated at The Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center with chemotherapy and radiation – not surgery as some have reported, Nevius said.
She was declared in remission on Feb 2, 2007, but three months later, scans showed “not only had it recurred, it metastasized to her liver,” Nevius said.
The latest treatment in Germany tried to address the cancers spread to that organ, he said.
Nevius would not say where in Germany she was being treated, just that it was a clinic affiliated with some hospitals. He also would not give details on her treatments there, but said media reports that she was getting stem cell treatments were false.
“Its never had anything to do with stem cells,” or alternative treatments such as shark cartilage, coffee enemas or unproven “detoxification” diets, Nevius said.
“Its much more scientific than that. Its not a fringe treatment,” he said, and the doctors have “multiple, multiple degrees.”
An upcoming documentary on which Fawcett has worked for several years, “A Wing and a Prayer,” co-produced with Nevius and others, will air on NBC soon and give details, he said.
After the procedure in Germany, Piro said Fawcett flew back to Los Angeles because she was eager to go home. In a statement released earlier, Piro said Fawcett was using a wheelchair because it was painful for her to walk. “That pain, which was coming from the hematoma, had nothing directly to do with the cancer,” Piro said.
“She remains in good spirits with her usual sense of humor,” he added. “Shes been in great shape her whole life and has an incredible resolve and an incredible resilience.”
“Let me tell you what shes not,” Nevius said. “As previously reported by everybody, shes not unconscious. She is not on deaths door. The family has not gathered to say goodbye.”
Anal cancer is relatively uncommon, but occurs a little more often in women than men. An estimated 5,070 cases were diagnosed in the United States last year, leading to about 680 deaths, according to the American Cancer Society.
Meanwhile, Redmond ONeal, Fawcetts son with Ryan ONeal, was arrested Sunday on suspicion of bringing narcotics into a jail facility and was being held on $25,000 bail.
A deputy at a jail in Castaic, north of Los Angeles, was doing a security sweep of the jails parking lot when he stopped the 24-year-old, who acknowledged he was carrying drugs and was apparently at the jail giving a ride to a friend, Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
A phone message left for ONeals attorney wasnt immediately returned.