Farrah Fawcett battling cancer

Charlie's Angels star stays strong after diagnosis

Saturday, 7 October 2006

Farrah Fawcett is battling cancer – and is determined to stay positive, she said in a statement Friday.

In the statement, titled "Positivity is a Necessity," Fawcett, 59, says: "Throughout the journey of my life, I have maintained a strong faith in the power of the human spirit to overcome adversity. I deeply believe in one's own positive will to overcome even the most daunting challenges.

"I am resolutely strong and I am determined to bite the bullet and fight the fight while going through the next six weeks of cutting-edge, state-of-the-art treatment. I should be able to return to my life as it was before at the end of my treatment.

"I am so grateful for the overwhelming outpouring of concern, love, prayers and compassion from all over the world. You are all a source of enduring strength."

Fawcett, who starred as Jill Munroe in the '70s hit Charlie's Angels, has served as a celebrity spokesperson for the American Cancer Society. Her older sister, Diane, died of lung cancer in 1998, and her former companion, Ryan O'Neal, successfully battled leukemia after being diagnosed with the disease in 2001.

She recently reunited with her Angels costars Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith for a tribute to the show's producer, the late Aaron Spelling, at the Aug. 27 Emmys.