Last February, actress Shannen Doherty was diagnosed with breast cancer, and just this past August, she said that the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes. Up until now, she’s documented her struggles with cancer on Instagram, and in a new clip from Chelsea Doherty has a frank and emotional discussion with Chelsea Handler about the disease’s physical and psychological effects. “I think what’s beautiful and hard and interesting about cancer is that it tears you down and builds you, and tears you down and builds you, and it remakes you so many different times,†Doherty told Handler. “So the person I thought I was supposed to be, or was going to be, or who I thought I was six months ago is now somebody completely different. And I realized ‘Wow, I really thought that I was so brave and so gracious this entire time and really I was just hiding.’â€
In the episode, available for streaming now on Netflix, Handler begins the conversation with Doherty and an oncologist, Dr. Lawrence Piro, before sitting down with Doherty one on one. Doherty discusses the emotional impact of losing her hair, the support she’s gotten from her husband Kurt, losing friends, and embracing vulnerability. “I don’t feel like I have to hide behind a tough exterior anymore. I don’t feel like I have to put on this tough girl front in order for people to either respond to me or to protect myself anymore,†said Doherty. “Now, I’m like, No, no, no, I’ll cry with you.â€