Shannen Doherty recently passed away after battling stage 4 cancer for years. Shortly before her passing, she had a shocking interaction with Kelly Ripa when she was a guest on Live with Kelly and Mark.
So what exactly happened between the two women? The truth about what Kelly really did and the impact it had on Shannen is honestly crazy.
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According to People Magazine, in February, Shannen opened up about something she had been keeping to herself for two months. On an episode of her podcast, Let’s Be Clear with Shannen Doherty, she revealed that when she was a guest on Live with Kelly and Mark in December 2023, Kelly had made some startling remarks to her off-camera.
Shannen’s Interview Started Off Terribly
During Shannen’s on-stage interview, she was extremely vulnerable with Kelly and Mark about some really sensitive topics in her life. It turns out that Kelly was waiting until a commercial break to say her piece because she clearly didn’t want what she had to say to be caught on camera.
Shannen admitted that 2023 had started off in a terrible way. She explained that in January, her doctors had discovered growths in her brain, and some of them were really large.
So, about a week later, she had brain surgery to remove one of the masses. The tests ultimately confirmed that the tumors were cancerous.
Shannen claimed that at around the same time she learned the cancer had spread to her brain, she also had to deal with some serious issues in her marriage. But after her interview wrapped and the show cut to a commercial break, Kelly took the opportunity to talk to her about something seriously unexpected.
Shannen revealed that Kelly had actually offered to be her matchmaker. Then, she asked a lot of questions about what Shannen was looking for in a man and even mentioned that she potentially had “somebody in mind” for her already.
Shannen was immediately on board and told Kelly to text her more about it. She added that Kelly was “awesome,” and “100 percent the right person” to help set her up with somebody.
Shannen Went Through a Divorce While Battling Cancer
Kelly had obviously known that she needed some positivity in her life. Shannen’s battle against cancer was stressful enough on its own, but what she had hinted at during her interview was emotionally exhausting as well.
According to Entertainment Tonight, Shannen filed for divorce from Kurt Iswarienko in April 2023, after 11 years of marriage.
Shortly before she appeared on Live with Kelly and Mark, she revealed, on an episode of her podcast, that they had separated after she made an outrageous discovery. Shannen claimed that just days before she was scheduled to be at the hospital for her brain surgery in January, she found out that Kurt had allegedly been having an affair for two years.
She added that he wanted to be at the hospital while she had the operation, but she shut him down. Shannen said that after she learned that Kurt had reportedly been cheating on her, she felt too betrayed and “completely unloved” to let him be her support person at the hospital.
The emotional pain she felt was overwhelming. So, Kelly’s offer to be her matchmaker couldn’t have come at a better time.
Shannen Felt That She Would Be a “Hard Sell”
A few months after Shannen shared what had happened behind the scenes at Live With Kelly and Mark, she made an appearance on an episode of Kelly’s podcast, Let’s Talk Off Camera. Throughout their conversation, Shannen discussed the challenges she had been facing. Kelly not only validated her feelings but showed her so much kindness as well.
Shannen explained that she had recently started taking a different type of medication to try to treat some of her cancer symptoms. Unfortunately, she had been experiencing difficult side effects and was feeling pretty sick that day.
Kelly sympathized with Shannen and told her that she looked beautiful. She also mentioned that she was still looking for a man to set her up with, although she had one guy in mind that she thought could be exactly who Shannen needed in her life.
Kelly claimed that the man was nice, established, a little bit older, and rich. Shannen jokingly replied that she was already interested in him, but then, she made a devastating confession.
Shannen admitted that she thought of herself as “a very hard sell” in the dating world due to having stage 4 cancer. She believed that it would be tough for any potential partners to want to be in a relationship with her because she “might have an expiration date.”
Shannen Was in a Dark Place
But then, she brought up another concern she had that was truly heartbreaking. Shannen said she wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about getting back into the dating world. She didn’t know if she was ready to get into a relationship because it had only been a little over a year since she filed for divorce.
She also mentioned that the reason why they split up had impacted her mental health in a very intense way. Shannen explained that after she discovered Kurt had allegedly been having an affair, she was “really in a dark place” for about nine months. She added that it wasn’t until recently that she felt like she had “completely recovered,” and realized that she no longer had feelings for him.
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Even though she didn’t love him anymore, she was still hesitant about dating, and the reason why was seriously sad. Shannen revealed that she had always struggled with feeling insecure.
But she had been feeling more self-conscious lately because she had a lot of scars from the surgeries she’d had. She said she didn’t know how she would explain them to a love interest in the future.
Life Handed Shannen Lemons
Shannen also opened up about how she had recently been extremely depressed and had been finding it hard to get out of her own head. She explained that a lot of people had been telling her about their relatives who had been diagnosed with the same type of cancer as her.
Shannen added that many would mention that their family member had passed away around five years after they were diagnosed. She knew those people were only trying to relate to her, but it was really difficult to hear, especially since she was approaching the five-year mark of being diagnosed.
Kelly asked Shannen if she had been talking to a therapist to try to relieve some of that mental burden. Shannen claimed that she considered it, but she had such a hard time trusting people that she didn’t think it was for her.
How Kelly responded was honestly unbelievable. Kelly told Shannen that if she ever wanted to talk, she could call her anytime.
She also said that she was going to send her a funny card that she had purchased a while ago. She explained that it was perfect for the type of situation that Shannen had just talked about.
What it said was absolutely unreal. Kelly revealed that inside the card, it read, ‘When life hands you lemons, I promise not to tell you a story about how my mother passed away from lemons.’
Shannen said that the card was amazing, and she was going to frame it after she received it in the mail. Sadly, about two weeks after the podcast episode aired, Shannen passed away.
Kelly Shared the Dreadful News
According to Decider, Kelly shared the news, which she referred to as “dreadful,” on Live with Kelly and Mark. She also honored her late friend’s memory by speaking about what an incredible person she was. Kelly revealed that Shannen “lived her life the way she fought cancer – courageously.”
She added that she was thankful to have had the chance to talk to her recently when she was a guest on Let’s Talk Off Camera, and shared the story of the card she had sent. Kelly said that even if someone didn’t know Shannen, they still felt like they did because of how special she was. She called her “a girl’s girl,” who was one of a kind, and admitted that she was “so sad to lose her.”
Shannen’s passing must have been absolutely tragic for Kelly. Fortunately, it sounds like she was able to make Shannen’s day so much brighter anytime they talked. Considering everything that she went through in the last year and a half, Kelly’s kindness clearly meant a lot to her.
