{"id":2512573,"date":"2026-07-22T14:32:21","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T14:32:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2512573"},"modified":"2026-07-22T14:32:21","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T14:32:21","slug":"william-shatner-daughter-melanie-fought-stage-4-cancer-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/william-shatner-daughter-melanie-fought-stage-4-cancer-together\/","title":{"rendered":"William Shatner, Daughter Melanie Fought Stage 4 Cancer Together"},"content":{"rendered":"

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William Shatner<\/strong><\/a> and his daughter Melanie Shatner<\/strong> are shedding light on their battles with stage IV cancer \u2014 which they fought at the same time.<\/p>\n

Melanie, 61, was undergoing chemotherapy for stage IV breast cancer in June 2023 when William, 95, was diagnosed with stage IV malignant melanoma, which spread to his lungs and brain.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember vividly thinking, \u2018I don\u2019t have the strength to take care of myself and lose my father at the same time,\u2019\u201d Melanie told People<\/em><\/a> in an interview published on Wednesday, July 22.<\/p>\n

William, meanwhile, remained positive while going through<\/a> his own treatment. \u201cThey said, \u2018You got cancer. If you came in later, you would have been dead,’\u201d he said. \u201cSee? That\u2019s my life. I think the universe is taking care of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Related: <\/span>Meet William Shatner\u2019s Ex-Wives: Inside His Marriage History<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tAside from his iconic Star Trek roles, William Shatner has made headlines over the years for his relationships. Shatner and actress Gloria Rand tied the knot in August 1956 after meeting on the set of a television play called Dreams. The pair welcomed daughter Leslie in 1958, followed by Lisabeth in 1961 and Melanie in [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Melanie initially discovered a lump on her breast one year before her father\u2019s diagnosis.<\/p>\n

\u201cI woke up in the middle of the night, and my finger moved up right beneath my breast. I felt a little bump and thought, \u2018It\u2019s just a bug bite,\u2019\u201d she recalled, noting she had a clear mammogram five months earlier.<\/p>\n

Melanie got imaging done the next day<\/a> just to be safe, adding, \u201cSomething pushed me back and said, \u2018No, have her recheck it.\u2019 She put the wand exactly where I put my finger and under her breath said, \u2018Now, I would have missed that.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Melanie\u2019s HER2-positive breast cancer spread to lymph nodes in her chest. William, for his part, was \u201cdevastated\u201d to learn about his daughter\u2019s health battle.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was very conscious of the importance of her life for herself and for her family,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

William ultimately took on the cost of Melanie\u2019s cancer treatment.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cYou said to me, \u2018I do not want you to worry. Just send me the bills,\u2019\u201d she shared. \u201cThen you made me laugh so hard when I was still going to the doctor a year later. You said, \u2018You\u2019ve got to get well. We\u2019re going to be in the poorhouse!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Melanie underwent multiple rounds of chemo with HER2-targeted therapies, a double mastectomy and 30 radiation therapy treatments.<\/p>\n

\u201cChemo was the most physically draining, and the radiation I found so emotionally draining,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

During her treatment, Melanie noticed a lump on her dad\u2019s cheek.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to the family doctor, and he said, \u2018It\u2019s your salivary gland. It\u2019s blocked. Just massage it,\u2019\u201d William recalled about the mass, which continued to grow.<\/p>\n

William later underwent surgery to remove the tumor on his face, which was followed by two years of immunotherapy to target the cancer in his lungs and brain.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got the perfect doctors for her cancer and my cancer,\u201d William continued.<\/p>\n

William and Melanie were both declared<\/a> cancer-free in late 2024.<\/p>\n

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