Fawcett to air cancer battle diary

Reuters

SPEAKING OUT: Actress Farrah Fawcett is going public with her two-and-a-half year battle with anal cancer.

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Actress Farrah Fawcett is going public with her two-and-a-half year battle with anal cancer, telling the story her way through a video diary to be broadcast on US television next week.

The former Charlie's Angels star chronicles her private struggles and her treatments in the United States and Germany in Farrah's Story.

"I've never understood why people are interested in anything that I do. Until now." Fawcett, 62, said in a statement

"As much as I would have liked to have kept my cancer private, I now realise that I have a certain responsibility to those who are fighting their own fights and may be able to benefit from learning about mine."

Shot with her own home video recorder and narrated by Fawcett, the two-hour special includes appearances by Fawcett's long-time partner, Ryan O'Neal, and her Charlie's Angels co-stars, Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson.

Although born in Texas, Fawcett came to epitomise Hollywood and California glamour in the 1970s as the tanned, tousled blond undercover detective in the popular TV show.

She was diagnosed with anal cancer in September 2006. Four months later she declared herself cancer-free only to have the disease return in May 2007.

Fawcett has sought alternative treatment in Germany and was briefly hospitalized last month in Los Angeles after returning for a medical procedure in Germany.

One report in April said the cancer had spread to her liver but Fawcett's doctors declined to comment.

Doug Vaughan, senior vice president of specials and alternative development at NBC, said that "Farrah's Story" was an "incredibly intimate and moving story".

"Farrah wanted us to see the face of cancer and she wanted to set the record straight regarding her diagnosis, her treatment and her outlook on the future," Vaughan said.

The actress described the footage, some of which has already been shared with US entertainment television shows, as "very personal".

"At the time, I didn't know if anybody would ever see it. But at some point, the footage took on a life of its own and dictated that it be seen," she said.

- Reuters