Shannen Doherty shaved her head on Wednesday, July 20, amid her ongoing battle with breast cancer. The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum documented the emotional process in pictures on her Instagram account.
Doherty, 45, posted black-and-white photos to show each of the six steps it took to cut off her dark locks. In step one, she shared an embrace with her mom, Rosa Elizabeth Doherty. In step six, she showed off a new mohawk.
The Mallrats actress was also joined by a friend, Anne Marie Kortright, who helped to take the photos. It looks as if Doherty cut off her hair at home and did the hairstyle herself in front of a mirror.
Doherty first revealed that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in an August lawsuit that she filed against Tanner Mainstain, her former business management firm. In the court documents, she alleged that her cancer spread because she wasn’t properly covered by her health insurance. Doherty was previously fired by the firm and learned of her cancer after she enrolled in the Screen Actors Guild’s insurance last year.
“In November 2013, SAG sent the premium invoice to Tanner Mainstain for Plaintiff’s medical insurance coverage for the year 2014. However, Defendants ignored it, failed to pay it (without informing Plaintiff) and then promptly terminated their relationship with [Doherty] effective February 7, 2014,” the suit reads.
Back in February, Doherty revealed that she was planning to remove the tumor. “Ultimately, they’re just breasts, right? I mean, I love them, they’re mine, they’re beautiful, but in the grand scheme of things, I would rather be alive, and I would rather grow old with my husband,” she said during The Dr. Oz Show.
Dr. Mehmet Oz later opened up about Doherty’s health during an interview with Entertainment Tonight. “Shannen was very transparent about what’s going on in her breast. She has cancer on one side, it’s a big tumor, it has spread to the lymph nodes on that side, but we don’t have any evidence that it’s gone any farther than that,” he said at the time.
“She had to come to grips with the fear — sometimes that fear has paralyzed her over the past year,” he added. “Thankfully, if we aggressively can treat it, we can save Shannen’s life, and her doctors are superb and they’re all over that decision.”
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