Days Of Our Lives star Suzanne Rogers is now in remission in her battle with stage two colon cancer.
Rogers, 82, shared the positive health update with People, just days after publicly revealing she was diagnosed over the summer.
The soap star has since completed treatment, and credits an anointing her priest gave her in helping her get through the health ordeal.
‘I’m feeling so much better. I mean, my summer was rough. I had cancer removed, radiation, that was tough. But I didn’t lose my hair. I guess I got it early,’ she told the publication at Peacock’s Days of our Lives 60th Anniversary Celebration in Los Angeles on Saturday.
‘I was stage two, and it was a certain kind of chemo that they gave me, it was pills and the radiation, and it didn’t affect it so that was good,’ she said, adding she is currently ‘in remission.’
The diagnosis put things into perspective for Rogers, who is better able to let ‘small’ issues roll off her back.
‘I don’t worry about the small things. It’s not worth it. I was rushing here, and I went, ‘Wait a minute. You’re not going anywhere,’ she said.
Rogers turned to her family and faith as she weathered the diagnosis.
‘The day before I started my chemo and radiation, my priest, I told him, I said, “Can I talk to you about something?” I said, “I’m starting chemo and radiation tomorrow,”‘ she recalled. ‘He said, “Come with me.” And he took me into the church, up the aisle, up on the altar. He said, “Stand right here.” And he went and got some oils and a prayer and did the anointing. So I felt that that’s what helped me through.’
Rogers first revealed her diagnosis with TV Insider in a story published on October 30.
The 70s soap legend said she felt like something ‘wasn’t quite right’ with her body, prompting her to make a doctor’s appointment over the summer.
After a number of tests, which included a colonoscopy, MRI, PET scan and biopsy, her doctor told her she had cancer.
‘[My doctor] said, “You have cancer and you have to start treatment,”‘ Rogers — who is the longest-running actor in an American soap opera — recalled.
‘It was all a shock. I mean, I think I was in shock for several days because I take pretty good care of myself. But he said, “It’s a good thing you caught it in time.”‘
Colorectal cancer, which starts in the colon or the rectum, is the third most common cancer in the world, after lung and breast cancers.
In the United States, colorectal cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and the fourth leading cause in women, according to American Cancer Society.
Stage 2 colorectal cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes, but may have spread through and beyond the wall of the colon or rectum.
After she wrapped up Days of Our Lives for the summer, the star began treatment three days later.
‘It was radiation every day and chemo every day for six weeks and it was tough,’ Rogers shared.
‘It was tough knowing you had to do it five days a week and then you had off Saturday and Sunday. I thoroughly enjoyed my weekends because I didn’t have to go to and see a doctor. I was so tired of seeing doctors.’
While undergoing treatment, Rogers found crucial support from her Days of Our Lives co-stars, especially from Linsey Godfrey, who is a cancer survivor.
‘It was scary,’ she said, adding, ‘When I had to go see a doctor, one of them would go with me because you get to a point where once they say cancer, you don’t hear anything else.’
‘I had to have an infusion, and it takes about an hour and a half, so Linsey sat there with me and held my hand while I was having it,’ she recalled.
‘We would go out to lunch or dinner with Paul Telfer and Linsey’s daughter, Aleda. I knew I could count on them, so it was a lovely experience on and off the set. We really feel like a family.’
Rogers said she completed her treatment on July 31 and is ‘feeling really good’ now.
However, it hasn’t been without challenges.
‘The biggest thing is that I was tired because that’s not like me. I have a lot of energy all the time, so it really kind of shook me thinking, “Am I going to get my energy back?” And it seems like it’s coming back. It’s not 100% yet, but I feel better. Today I feel really good, and that’s happening more and more than the other way around, so I’m really happy about that.’
‘I start back to work next week, so we’ll see how that goes,’ Rogers added.
‘Now, I’m feeling anxious like I do any time I get scripts because I want to do my very best and you don’t want to hold up anybody. So that’s the only anxiousness I feel. It’s not because of my illness, let’s put it that way.’
Rogers also revealed she did not lose her iconic red hair during treatment.
‘I guess because I was taking the chemo pills,’ she explained. ‘I’m sure there’ll be people that are saying, “Well, she didn’t really have cancer,” but you know what? I really don’t care what people say. I know what I’ve gone through and I’ve come out on the other side, so that’s all I care about.’
In 1984, the Virginia-born redhead was diagnosed with the rare muscle disease myasthenia gravis, greatly impacting how much she could work, but she’s reportedly in remission now.
Rogers made history as the longest-running actor in any American soap opera for portraying the character Maggie Horton Kiriakis on Days of Our Lives for 52 years – beginning in 1973.
She won her first and only Daytime Emmy Award in 1979 for outstanding supporting actress in a drama series.
Rogers also appeared in episodes of Knight Rider; Little House on the Prairie; Quincy, M.E.; and Love, American Style.
The former Rockette got her start at Radio City Music Hall as well as numerous Broadway productions.
Rogers was married to Another World star Sam Groom between 1980-1982.
