Amanda Peet Shares Breast Cancer Diagnosis Amidst Parents’ Hospice Care in Essay
Amanda Peet revealed a recent breast cancer diagnosis in a personal essay published in The New Yorker. She shared the news while both of her parents were receiving hospice care.
Early detection and screening
Peet said she had long been monitored because her breasts were described as dense and busy. She saw a breast surgeon every six months for surveillance.
A routine scan in late August produced an unusual ultrasound. A biopsy followed and found a small tumor. Doctors ordered an MRI to map the extent of disease and to check lymph nodes and the opposite side.
Diagnosis details and follow-up
After further testing, physicians classified the cancer as stage I. It was hormone-receptor-positive and HER2-negative.
Providers later identified a second mass that proved benign. Her planned treatment includes a lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy.
Family crisis and timing
Peet wrote that her parents were long divorced and lived on opposite coasts. Her mother entered hospice in June, and her father entered hospice only a week before his death.
She flew to New York but did not arrive before her father took his last breath. She did, however, see his body before it was removed from his apartment.
Personal context
Peet is married to David Benioff. The couple share three children.
She described the diagnosis arriving in stages. One test result brought a fleeting sense of relief, which gave way to renewed fear as further imaging was awaited.
Final hours with her mother
Her mother had Parkinson’s disease and was in hospice. Peet recounted a quiet, intimate farewell at the bedside.
She said the morphine took time to relieve pain. Peet climbed onto the hospital bed to come into her mother’s line of sight and greeted her with their usual nickname, howdy doodle.
In the essay, Amanda Peet shares her breast cancer diagnosis amidst her parents’ hospice care and reflects on grief, family, and treatment decisions. The New Yorker published the piece Saturday, and Filmogaz.com is reporting on her account.
