Not Giving Up
THE POP LEGEND VOWS TO BEAT CANCER AGAIN
When Olivia Newton John was first diagnosed with breast cancer 25 years ago, “One of my best friends’ husbands said to me, ‘Congratulations, because now you will grow,’” she shared with Closer last year. “It was really great words of wisdom.”
The singer-actress, 68, recently learned the cancer has returned and spread to a bone in her lower back, but she’s keeping a similarly positive attitude. “Olivia is confident she will be back later in the year, better than ever, to celebrate her shows,” her rep said in a statement announcing the postponement of her upcoming concerts in the U.S. and Canada. “My mom and best friend is going to be fine,” daughter Chloe Lattanzi, 31, said after the diagnosis. “She will beat this in no time.”
HOPE FOR THE FUTURE
The Aussie star is launching a multipronged attack on the disease, working with natural therapists as well as doctors at her Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre in Melbourne, Australia. “She will be using medicine that I often talk about. [Cannabidiol]!” said Chloe, who owns a legal cannabis farm with her fiancé, James Driskill, in Oregon. “Cancer is the disease of our generation, and it is part of my and my mother’s quest to beat this insidious monster.”
It’s a deeply personal battle for Olivia, who lost her beloved sister, Rona, to brain cancer in 2013. “I was in a lot of grief,” Olivia told Closer. “In life we all go through loss, and that’s part of the journey. Music has always helped me heal.”
She can also draw on the support of her family, including John Easterling, 64, her husband since 2008. “He’s a caring human being,” Olivia raved to Closer. “He’s fun to be with and really calming.”
Through it all, Olivia maintains a healthy perspective. “I hope for so many things — peace on earth, love, understanding,” she says. “There will be an end to cancer.”
— Bruce Fretts, with reporting by Ilyssa Panitz