Chicago Med star Marlyne Barrett just revealed that she has cancer.
Barrett, who plays nurse Maggie Campbell on the Chicago Med cast, told People that she has uterine and ovarian cancer.
According to Barrett, her doctors discovered that she had a football-sized tumor on her uterus and left ovary back in July.
“I’m an extremely private person, but I felt a responsibility to tell my story. When my character went through breast cancer, I had a sea of people reach out to me through social media. They brought me courage, and so I felt a sense of inevitability to meet their hearts where they met me,” Barrett told People.
Barrett is referencing how her character, Maggie, was dealing with breast cancer on the show and how she received many messages from fans of Chicago Med as the story played out.
Her character has since recovered from the cancer scare, but Barrett is now going through a battle of her own.
Marlyne Barrett battling cancer
“The initial experience was a shock, a shock to my womanhood. I didn’t believe them, but when they showed me the CT scan, I went, ‘Oh my word.’ The first questions were, ‘Am I going to live?’ I just fell into my husband’s arms. It still takes my breath away when I think about it,” Barrett explained.
Barrett has had to undergo aggressive chemotherapy to deal with the tumor before an eventual hysterectomy.
Today, Barrett also shared a new photo of herself on Instagram, which can be seen below.
Chicago Med Season 8 has begun with Marlyne Barrett on screen
The show’s new season has already started, with the Chicago Med season premiere available now for streaming. The first episode featured Maggie with several storylines, including one where she avoids hanging out with the father of the daughter she put up for adoption.
Barrett says that she has continued working on the show, and even though it has been more difficult for her as she continues to go through treatment, she has made adjustments to stay on set.
On the upcoming episode of Chicago Med, Barrett will also be featured in another subplot.
For any fans who didn’t realize it, two main characters on Chicago Med just left the show. The season premiere certainly shifted some main stories as it returned from the long summer hiatus.
Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC.