Former Hollyoaks star Ali Bastian has shared a candid update on her breast cancer battle via Instagram.
The 42-year-old actress, who was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer in June, posted a teary-eyed selfie wearing a pink headscarf.
In her emotional message to her 78,800 followers, Bastian wrote: "Sometimes you don't feel like the fighter people tell you you are and that's okay too. This is not an easy path."
She added: "There is cortisol in tears and they are better out than in." The actress, best known for playing Becca Dean in the Channel 4 soap from 2001 to 2007, is currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment before facing a mastectomy and radiotherapy.
Bastian's latest update follows her emotional video posted earlier this month, showing the moment she shaved her hair.
Set to This is Me from The Greatest Showman, Bastian explained it was "a small price to pay for the chance to be well again".
Ali Bastian was best-known for starring in Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks before enjoying a stint on BBC Strictly
PA
She wrote: "When you have breast cancer, every month is breast cancer awareness month. Hair loss is just one aspect of all of this that we all wish wasn't a side effect but I know it's not forever."
The actress continued: "The deeper I get into my treatment, the more I see this as an outward expression of how stripped back and raw it feels right now."
She added a message of solidarity: "For all of the warrior women going through this. You are not alone."
Bastian discovered the lump while breastfeeding her 19-month-old daughter Isabella. Initially, doctors believed it to be a blocked duct and prescribed antibiotics.
Ali Bastian bravely shared an update of her cutting her hair this month
However, when the soreness persisted, Bastian sought further medical advice.
She told OK! Magazine: "It was a total shock. I have mornings when I wake up and I've forgotten… and then suddenly I remember. I'm still trying to process it."
The actress, who now lives in Ireland with her husband David O'Mahony and their two young daughters, received the diagnosis via telephone in June. Doctors reassured her they have "intent to cure".
Bastian is set to undergo a single mastectomy and is awaiting advice on whether a double mastectomy would be beneficial as a preventative measure.
The actress first gained prominence as Becca Dean in Hollyoaks from 2001 to 2007, where she was involved in a controversial storyline about a teacher-student affair.
Bastian later joined The Bill as PC Sally Armstrong from 2007 to 2009. In 2009, she competed in the seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing, finishing third.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
Ali Bastian was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year
PA/INSTAGRAM
More recently, she portrayed Becky Clarke in the BBC soap opera Doctors from February to November 2019.
Bastian married actor and producer O'Mahony in February 2019 and the couple welcomed their first daughter in March 2020 and their second in February 2023.
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