Busy Philipps is “grateful to be alive” after a shocking health scare.
The 47-year-old actress revealed this week that doctors discovered a rare, slow-growing malignant tumor in her brain earlier this year, despite her having no obvious symptoms.
Philipps opened up about the ordeal in a People cover story published Wednesday, saying she underwent two surgeries as a result of her grade 2 oligodendroglioma.
The “Dawson’s Creek” alum called the past six months the “weirdest” of her life, dubbing herself “the luckiest girl in the world” after following through with a full-body MRI scan her primary physician had initially talked her out of.
She ultimately decided to schedule the scan after speaking with her cousin-in-law, Dr. Justin Donlan, an internist who told her that “knowledge is power.”
Doctors spotted the tumor during a Prenuvo scan on Feb. 12, just one day after her former co-star James Van Der Beek died of colorectal cancer at age 48. The star had actually been considering canceling her appointment when her husband suggested the health check might be “the best thing” she could do for her late friend.
So, what exactly is an oligodendroglioma — and what subtle symptoms can signal the disease? Here’s what to know.
What are oligodendrogliomas?
An oligodendroglioma is a rare type of brain tumor that can also develop in the spinal cord. It starts in oligodendrocytes, cells that help support and protect the nerve cells responsible for sending messages throughout the brain and nervous system, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Philipps was diagnosed with a grade 2 oligodendroglioma, which is considered a “low-grade” tumor by the World Health Organization. That means it typically grows slowly and is generally easier to treat than more aggressive brain tumors.
“It is considered malignant, but it has the best prognosis of all of the malignant gliomas,” Dr. Alexandra Miller, Philipps’ neuro-oncologist at NYU Langone, told People.
“It’s sort of defined as a cancerous tumor based on the ability of the tumor to regrow over time, rather than it looking very malignant under the microscope.”
Higher-grade oligodendrogliomas are more aggressive. As they become more advanced, the tumors can grow faster, damage surrounding brain tissue and become more difficult to treat.
How common is oligodendrogliomas?
Oligodendrogliomas are relatively rare, accounting for an estimated 1.3% of all brain tumors in the US. About 1,100 Americans are diagnosed with the tumor each year, according to the American Brain Tumor Association.
They are most often diagnosed in adults between the ages of 20 and 40. The tumors are considered extremely rare in children under 15.
What are the symptoms of oligodendrogliomas?
Oligodendrogliomas can cause different symptoms depending on where the tumor is located and how big it grows. The most common warning sign is a seizure, which affects nearly 80% of patients, according to Columbia University.
When a tumor develops in the frontal lobe, it can trigger personality or behavior changes, as well as weakness or partial paralysis on one side of the body, known as hemiparesis.
Other symptoms can include headaches, partial vision loss and trouble with speech or language. Tumors in the temporal lobe, however, can be especially sneaky, sometimes causing few noticeable symptoms and going undetected for years.
Philipps said doctors caught her tumor before she developed any obvious symptoms. Still, in the years before her diagnosis, she had told her former “Dawson’s Creek” co-star and close friend Michelle Williams that she felt like her brain was “broken.”
“I’ve been saying this for the last few years,” Philipps told People. “I wasn’t consciously aware that anything was really wrong, but there was something that was misfiring. Like, I could not get a handle on it.”
How are oligodendrogliomas treated?
Oligodendrogliomas are considered one of the more treatable types of brain cancer.
Surgery is usually the first line of attack, with doctors aiming to remove as much of the tumor as possible without damaging healthy brain tissue. Depending on the results, patients may also need radiation or chemotherapy.
For Philipps, that meant a roughly five-hour surgery on March 2 to remove the 2.6-centimeter mass from her brain. Doctors identified it as an oligodendroglioma after biopsying the tumor.
Her doctors told her that waiting until she developed seizures could have allowed the tumor to grow to two or three times its size — potentially making it more difficult to remove completely.
Philipps initially made it through the operation without incident, but later developed a staphylococcus infection in her incision. She needed a second surgery to clean out the infected area and remove one of the tiny titanium tacks doctors had used to hold her skull bone in place.
Are oligodendrogliomas deadly?
Many patients have a good chance of living for years after diagnosis.
The outlook is typically better when the tumor is caught early. Between 69% and 90% of people with low-grade oligodendrogliomas are still alive five years after diagnosis, according to the Cleveland Clinic, with survival rates potentially even higher among younger adults.
For people with high-grade oligodendrogliomas, the five-year survival rate ranges from 45% to 76%.
Philipps told People she feels grateful for going through with the Prenuvo scan that caught her tumor, saying she hopes she can inspire other people to listen to their gut.
“We are frequently told by doctors that there is nothing to worry about [when] you kind of know that there’s something to worry about,” she said. “There’s nothing to be afraid of in having information. It’s only empowering.”
