EastEnders' Samantha Womack "thankful" as she is now cancer-free

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She is feeling 'grateful' to have been diagnosed early

Samantha Womack, who is perhaps best known for playing Veronica Mitchell on EastEnders, has shared the news that she is now cancer-free. The actress was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year, after a routine health check. She is now doing well after undergoing both surgery and chemotherapy, telling OK! Magazine she is feeling "a lot better". Samantha said: "My treatment is ongoing for breast cancer, the surgery was quite difficult to recover from just because it's quite tender when you have lymph nodes removed, there's a few mobility issues at the beginning." She explained that her first round of chemo was "pretty hardcore", but she was able to recover in Spain, which she said made things easier.

The actress now says that she is feeling really "thankful" and "grateful" to have caught her diagnosis early. "I feel very thankful for my life," she said. "I know that sounds crazy, but it’s almost like I can see the beauty in everything now – like everything feels special. I keep bursting into tears, because I’m happy." She added that her experience with cancer shifted her perspective. "Suddenly, everything feels really important and really vital and you suddenly just appreciate everything." Samantha shared her breast cancer diagnosis news following the death of Olivia Newton-John earlier this year. She posted a photo from her encounter with the Grease star and wrote: "This was the most magical of evenings. Olivia and Chloe had come to see Grease in London and we had dinner together afterward. I was so excited and in awe, she was my childhood. "I now start my own battle with this disease and am left feeling deeply moved."