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Drew Barrymore is opening up about a deeply personal health scare that left her shaken but ultimately grateful. On the November 3 episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, the 50-year-old actress and talk show host revealed that she recently went through a breast cancer scare that resulted in an emergency biopsy.
"This is the thing I've wanted to risk talking about on this show because I recently had a scare," Barrymore shared during an emotional sit-down with comedian Tig Notaro, who previously battled bilateral breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy. "I'm completely fine, but I did get a bad mammogram, and I got taken into that room, and then I had an emergency biopsy and I waited for those five days."
Barrymore explained that the experience inspired her to speak openly about health and vulnerability. Earlier in the episode, she praised Notaro's new documentary, Come See Me in the Good Light, which tells the story of poet Andrea Gibson and her wife, Megan Falley, as they navigate life following Gibson's terminal ovarian cancer diagnosis. "Having seen your documentary, I feel like I might be able to start scratching the surface here because of what you guys were brave enough, bold enough, and smart enough to put out into the world," Barrymore said.
Notaro described the documentary as "a very intimate portrait of a wildly inspiring, beautiful person at the end of life," and encouraged others going through health challenges to lean on their support systems. Reflecting on her own journey, she said, "It cracked me open completely. I went from being somebody that held everything to myself... I was gonna do it on my own." She added that asking for help changed her perspective: "It is the greatest gift you can give yourself and the people that love you because people want to help. People want to do good."
Barrymore has long been candid about her personal struggles, from substance abuse as a teenager to navigating life after divorce. She has credited therapy and open dialogue for her growth, once telling Us Weekly, "If you sit around and discuss things and you don't sweep them under the carpet, it will get better."
