Christina Applegate gets real about breast cancer battle: "I Was Lying My A** Off"

The actress regrets not being fully honest about the emotional toll of her journey battling breast cancer.

Christina Applegate has reflected bravely on her journey of battling breast cancer, expressing regret over not being fully open about the emotional toll it took. 

In a podcast interview with Dax Shepard on his Armchair Podcast, she revealed, "I learned that lesson the hard way because in 2008, when I had breast cancer at 36 years old, I went out, and I was the good girl talking about 'Oh, I love my new boobs' that are all scarred and f---ed up. What was I thinking?"

Applegate admitted to feeling like a fraud after an interview with Robin Roberts, saying, "My first interview was with Robin Roberts when I had cancer, and I'm sitting there lying my a** off about how I felt."  She felt compelled to hide her true struggles.

The "Married with Children" star emphasises the importance of honesty when facing health battles.  "Everything I was saying was a freaking lie. It was me trying to convince myself of something, and I think that did no service to anyone," she said.

Now, Applegate encourages others facing cancer to share their experiences openly. She advised a friend battling cancer, "'Take it down right now because someone's mom just died, and she was pretty strong...  What you're gonna do is you're going to be honest every step of the way through your chemo, your radiation, all the stuff.'"

Applegate herself has become an advocate for transparency regarding medical struggles, including her multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis in 2021.