Former MTV VJ Ananda Lewis Says Her Cancer Has Spread After She Decided to 'Keep My Tumor'
The former talk show host reflected on her decision to go against her doctor's recommendation for a mastectomy after her 2020 breast cancer diagnosis: 'I thought I had this'
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Ananda Lewis in 2005.Former MTV VJ Ananda Lewis has shared that her breast cancer has metastasized, and is now stage IV.
Lewis, 51, previously shared that she’d been diagnosed with stage III breast cancer in a 2020 Instagram post — saying that she’d refused mammograms for years due to a fear of radiation exposure.
But during a round-table discussion on cancer with CNN’s Stephanie Elam and CNN anchor Sara Sidner — who was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer early this year — Lewis shared that she went against her doctors’ recommendation for a double mastectomy following her diagnosis.
“My plan at first was to get out excessive toxins in my body. I felt like my body is intelligent, I know that to be true. Our bodies are brilliantly made,” Lewis explained.
“I decided to keep my tumor and try to work it out of my body a different way,” she shared. “Looking back on that, I go, ‘You know what? Maybe I should have.’ “
Ananda Lewis/Instagram
Former MTV host Ananda Lewis.Related: Just Got a Breast Cancer Diagnosis? Here Are 5 Questions to Ask Your Doctor
Elam explains in a voice-over that Lewis pursued homeopathic remedies as well as medication and radiation, and better sleep and diet. While she says Lewis improved for awhile, last year the MTV alum discovered her cancer had spread.
“My lymph system really flared up,” Lewis said. “It was the first time I ever had a conversation with death because I felt like: This is how it is.”
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Ananda Lewis in 2005.Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“I was just like, ‘Fudge man, I really thought I had this.’ I was frustrated, I was a little angry at myself, and I said, ‘Man, listen. I know you’re coming for me at some point. But I don’t want it to be now. And if you could just wait, I promise when you do come, I’m gonna make it fun for you.’ “
Everett
Ananda Lewis on MTV in 1999.“I literally had that conversation laying in my bed. I couldn’t get out of bed for, like, eight weeks,” she said.
Sidner shared that her diagnosis made her seek more joy in her life, while Lewis reflected on her decision to not pursue the double mastectomy, saying, “My quality of life was very important to me … I want to want to be here. So I had to do it a certain way, for me.”
Meanwhile, the 51-year-old CNN anchor — who underwent a double mastectomy in May — said that her cancer diagnosis made her realize "I want to be here...I want to thrive in a way I have never felt before."
Related: Miranda McKeon, 22, Shares How Surviving Stage 3 Breast Cancer ‘Changed the Way I Live’ (Exclusive)
As Elam shared in an Instagram post about their conversation, “I’m forever grateful for their willingness to have this conversation with me - to fully open up for the world. If we can get just one woman to get their mammogram because of this conversation, that’s success. I want everyone to live long, healthy lives.”
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