The “Horrible Reaction” That Shannen Doherty Had Following Brain Tumor Surgery

Shannen Doherty, a Beverly Hills actress, described her “horrible reaction” to steroids after undergoing brain cancer surgery.

Shannen Doherty discusses some of the most difficult aspects of her cancer struggle.

The Beverly Hills, 90210 star was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, but it has now moved to her brain and, most recently, her bones.

Doherty underwent radiation and surgery earlier this year as part of her treatment to remove a brain tumor, which she described as “one of the scariest things I’ve ever been through in my entire life” in an interview with People published Nov. 29.

The 52-year-old was placed on numerous steroids after the treatment to “take down any brain swelling,” but she encountered some terrible side effects.

“I have a horrible reaction with steroids,” the actress said of the drug, “so I tried to cut it down, and then the brain would swell a little bit more, and the hand would stop working completely.”

She couldn’t hold a glass or a fork with her right hand for almost three months.

“The first time a glass slipped right through my hand,” she remembered, “I was like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no, no.'” This is not going to happen. I’ll get to work on it.’ As a result, I did.”

Despite the difficulties, Doherty maintains a good attitude.

“We persevere through all sorts of crazy stuff, right?” she went on to say. “It takes tenacity, dedication, and faith to get through certain things.” “I’m not one to give up.”

Doherty’s cancer went into remission in 2017, but it reappeared in 2019 and was diagnosed as stage 4. Scan results in January 2023 revealed that it had spread to her brain.

Her family and friends have lauded her courage as she battles the disease, with former costar Brian Austin Green telling E! News in September that she was doing “great.”

“She’s resilient,” he said. “I mean, if anybody that I know is going to have to deal with what she’s dealing with, she’s the one that can get through it.”

“I’m not done with living,” she says. I’m not done loving yet. Not finished creating yet. I’m not done hoping to change things for the better. “I’m just not—I’m not finished.”