BLEEDING BRAIN CRIPPLES TV KID!
What’s Happening!! star Dee fighting for life again – 41 years after crash put her in coma
GUTSY child star Danielle Spencer is in the fight of her life against a hidden brain injury caused by a horrific car accident that put the beloved What’s Happening!! smart aleck in a coma 41 years ago, stunned pals reveal.
Although Spencer, now 53, rebounded from the accident and went on to become a respected veterinarian, the actress who played character Roger Thomas’ scheming little sister, Dee, on the hit ’70s sitcom recently began experiencing crippling headaches — and then slipped into unconsciousness.
“Doctors did emergency brain surgery, removing a bleeding hematoma that formed due to the car accident,” says a friend.
Danielle has had several brushes with death, beginning with the tragic 1977 car accident, in which her courageous actor stepfather, Tim Pelt, sacrificed his life to shield her body. Despite his efforts, she shattered an arm, a leg and her pelvis, and spent six days in the ICU.
Years later, injuries from that accident led to spinal stenosis and paralysis in Danielle’s legs.
Then in 2014, after moving to
Richmond, Va., she learned she had breast cancer after a self-exam revealed lumps in her right breast.
A biopsy confirmed the worst, and she opted for a preventive double mastectomy at VCU Massey Cancer Center.
According to Danielle’s friends, the brain surgery “was a success and she must now heal and recover.”
But the process won’t be easy because of her bout with cancer and spinal cord injury.
Her loved ones are saying she faces “a long recovery in physical rehabilitation.”
Despite making serious money doing commercials for candy companies and acting as a kid, Danielle is feeling the financial pinch, friends say.
Pals are raising cash online to “help with treatment and medication.”