An actress best known for her roles on NBC’s Saturday Night Live! says her cancer has returned, and it is “inoperable.” She also says doctors have told her she doesn’t have long to live.
But she says that she isn’t afraid or sad because she has had a fantastic life.
Credit: NBCUniversal
Victoria Jackson’s Cancer Has Returned
In an Instagram post on August 14, actress Victoria Jackson revealed that her cancer has returned.
She was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 after experiencing a cough that “wouldn’t go away.” Jackson says she underwent tests at a local hospital and eventually learned that she had stage 3C breast cancer, meaning that the cancer had spread from the breast to ten or more lymph nodes in her armpit.
She began chemotherapy treatments immediately.
Now, the SNL alum says her cancer is back, but doctors cannot remove a marble-sized tumor in her chest that is “laying on [her] windpipe” and will eventually cause her death. But the actress is handling the news very well, even using humor to share her announcement.
Credit: NBC’s “Today” Show
“I have 34.8 months to live,” she posted on Instagram, “if I don’t get hit by a meteor, shot by a MAGA hater, get COVID again, or WWIII breaks out.”
The 65-year-old actress says she got the news from her doctors on her birthday on August 2. Her response was a calm one.
“I was like, ‘Oh, okay. Well, that makes sense.’ How can you catch every molecule?'” she explains. The actress continued, saying, “I’m not good in science or math, but I expected it could come back. I kind of forgot about it for nine years. I forgot I had cancer.”
Jackson’s Most Memorable Performances on “Saturday Night Live!”
Victoria Jackson is best known for her six-season tenure on Saturday Night Live! from 1986 to 1992.
Credit: NBCUniversal
A comedian with a quirky, high-pitched voice and ditzy persona, Jackson quickly became a fan favorite. On SNL, she often portrayed bubbly, naive characters, most famously in her recurring role as a stereotypical “dumb blonde” in various sketches.
Credit: NBCUniversal
Some of her most memorable characters include Charlene, the eccentric, gum-chewing, and perpetually confused woman who appeared in several sketches and her parodies of celebrities like Sally Struthers.
New Treatments May Prolong the Actress’s Life
Jackson is currently being treated at Vanderbilt’s Breast Center in Nashville and is more than a week into taking a drug called Palbociclib. According to Cancer Research UK, Palbociclib targets breast cancer cells by blocking proteins that cause them to grow and divide.
If the drug isn’t effective, Jackson’s oncologists may treat her cancer with radiation therapy. The hope is that the various treatments will give the former SNL actress more time with her husband, her children, and her grandchildren.
Credit: NBCUniversal
Jackson says her family members have asked her if she is scared or saddened by the diagnosis.
“I thought, ‘Well, I’m not sad. Why am I not sad?’” she says. “Because I don’t miss anything in their childhoods. I video every day of my daughter’s life. And I don’t miss one thing with my grandchildren: tap [dance] recitals, acting shows, ever.”
We wish her well on her journey to battle the disease.
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