Baywatch star Nicole Eggert reveals her shaved head as she attends documentary press tour with her former co-stars - seven months after confirming breast cancer diagnosis
Nicole Eggert was on hand to discuss her best known role as she attended a press tour in Pasadena on Wednesday, seven months after revealing her breast cancer diagnosis.
The actress became a fan favourite after playing Roberta "Summer" Quinn across 44 episodes of Baywatch at the height of its popularity in the early '90s.
And she reflected on her two-years as a Los Angeles County lifeguard while attending the TCA Summer 2024 Press Tour - part of an ongoing promotional campaign for new documentary After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun.
Eggert, 52, looked vastly different after shaving her head as she battles stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer.
She was joined onstage for a Q&A with a host of former co-stars, among them Traci Bingham, Carmen Electra, Billy Warlock, Jeremy Jackson, Alexandra Paul and David Chockachi.
Nicole Eggert discussed her best known role as she attended a press tour in Pasadena on Wednesday (left) four months after shaving her head as she battles breast cancer
The actress became a fan favourite after playing Roberta "Summer" Quinn across 44 episodes of Baywatch at the height of its popularity in the early '90s
The actress made the difficult decision to shave her hair off in March and captured the moment she went about it with the assistance of her daughter.
Eggert, who first disclosed she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in December, told Inside Edition that she had just learned doctors had found more disease as she undergoes treatment.
She said she 'kicks herself' over not regularly checking her breasts and said tissue from the breast implants she got aged 19 made it harder to detect any anomalies in her chest.
The star admitted that after gaining around 25 pounds and feeling pain in her left breast beginning in October, she underwent a mammogram and three biopsies - which resulted in a diagnosis of stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer.
She said: 'When I felt it, my heart dropped and I was like oh my god. Nobody could take me, so I walked into every breast care center. It’s horrifying because every day and every minute that passes, you know it’s growing.
Only a month later, a mammogram finally confirmed her fears – Eggert had stage 2 breast cancer.
'My heart dropped, I lost all hearing, everything sank. It’s named invasive cribriform carcinoma. It’s very rare,' she explained.
'The self-exams, I’m telling you, I kick myself. That’s the one thing I should have been doing.'
The actress revealed tissue from her breast implants made self-exams difficult, adding: 'If I didn’t have them and I had my smaller, natural breasts, I am sure I would have felt it much sooner.'
She reflected on the show while attending the TCA Summer 2024 Press Tour - part of a promotional campaign for new documentary After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun
L-R: Executive producer Matthew Felkner, Traci Bingham, Carmen Electra, Billy Warlock, Jeremy Jackson, Alexandra Paul, David Chockachi, Nicole Eggert and talent producer Erika Eleniak onstage at the event in Pasadena on Wednesday
The actress made the difficult decision to shave her hair off in March and captured the moment she went about it with the assistance of her daughter
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world and affects more than two MILLION women a year
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK there are more than 55,000 new cases, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it strikes 266,000 each year and kills 40,000. But what causes it and how can it be treated?
What is breast cancer?
It comes from a cancerous cell which develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.
When the breast cancer has spread into surrounding tissue it is called 'invasive'. Some people are diagnosed with 'carcinoma in situ', where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.
Most cases develop in those over the age of 50 but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, though this is rare.
Staging indicates how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.
The cancerous cells are graded from low, which means a slow growth, to high, which is fast-growing. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after they have first been treated.
What causes breast cancer?
A cancerous tumour starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or alters certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply 'out of control'.
Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance, such as genetics.
What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most are not cancerous and are fluid filled cysts, which are benign.
The first place that breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. If this occurs you will develop a swelling or lump in an armpit.
How is breast cancer diagnosed?
- Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may do tests such as a mammography, a special x-ray of the breast tissue which can indicate the possibility of tumours.
- Biopsy: A biopsy is when a small sample of tissue is removed from a part of the body. The sample is then examined under a microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.
If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess if it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound scan of the liver or a chest X-ray.
How is breast cancer treated?
Treatment options which may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments are used.
- Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or the removal of the affected breast depending on the size of the tumour.
- Radiotherapy: A treatment which uses high energy beams of radiation focused on cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells, or stops them from multiplying. It is mainly used in addition to surgery.
- Chemotherapy: A treatment of cancer by using anti-cancer drugs which kill cancer cells, or stop them from multiplying.
- Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the 'female' hormone oestrogen, which can stimulate the cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments which reduce the level of these hormones, or prevent them from working, are commonly used in people with breast cancer.
How successful is treatment?
The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small, and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumour in an early stage may then give a good chance of cure.
The routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 70 means more breast cancers are being diagnosed and treated at an early stage.
For more information visit breastcancernow.org or call its free helpline on 0808 800 6000
Eggert confirmed she was battling stage 2 breast cancer with fans in December 2023
The star said she has not been contacted about appearing on the Baywatch reboot but is open to the idea just days after the comeback of the highly-popular beach drama was announced.
She told TMZ that she has been in contact with Baywatch's production company Freemantle over a documentary on the series that she has been working on.
Eggert explained: 'We have the Baywatch documentary that is ready to be released and you know the timing of it is really working out. But I haven't talked to anybody as far as me being part of it as talent or anything like that.'
The blonde actress starred on the series as lifeguard Summer Quinn over 44 episodes from 1992 to 1994 and could be potential role under a few conditions.
She said: 'To be a part of a reboot I guess that would really depend on what that would look like.
'I mean am I going to put on the red bathing suit? Of course not. Not these days. But if it was to be a parent or a senior lifeguard in the office or something to that extent sure. Or a fun little cameo or something like that.'
'My heart dropped, I lost all hearing, everything sank. It’s named invasive cribriform carcinoma. It’s very rare,' she revealed
The blonde bombshell actress starred alongside Pamela Anderson (pictured) on Baywatch from 1992 until 1994
Nicole features in the new documentary, but has ruled out the possibility of starring in a mooted Baywatch reboot
