Melissa Etheridge

Melissa sings song of survival

'Closest to death I've ever been,' sez cancer-fighting Grammy star

BY TRACY CONNOR DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Melissa Etheridge, bald from her battle against breast cancer, rocks last Sunday's Grammys spectacular. The courageous star before her illness struck, in action at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in April 2002. Rock star Melissa Ethridge is telling the heartrending truth about the moment she realized she had cancer, her decision to quit chemotherapy, and her chrome-domed appearance on the Grammys. "I'm not gonna be afraid of the truth," she said in an interview with "Dateline NBC" that airs tomorrow night. "The truth is, yes, I had cancer. Yes, I got it outta me. Yes, I went through chemotherapy. Yes, I'm bald. Yes, I'm still walking." Etheridge, 43, inspired millions of viewers with her roof-raising rendition of Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart" on the music awards show last Sunday. She also got kudos for her decision to take the stage without a wig or hat, but said she never even considered hiding her hair loss. "You know what? When I came out, when I walked that walk ... I just followed the truth," she said. The singer was diagnosed with breast cancer last October during the Canadian leg of her "Lucky" tour, after she found a lump in her breast. "It was rather large. And I didn't know why I hadn't noticed it the day before," she said. "And I touched it and ... there's something in your soul. You're like, 'This is different.'" She had two operations to remove the tumor and affected lymph nodes and then started a grueling regimen of eight chemotherapy sessions. "It's the closest to death I have ever been," said Etheridge, who has two young children with ex-lover Julie Cypher. She cut the treatments short after five sessions - because the drug Taxol was leaving her guitar-strumming fingers numb - and moved onto radiation therapy. She said she is now cancer-free and has made big changes in her life to make sure the disease doesn't return. "I have taken every what-I-consider-poisonous thing out of my life. Out of my food. Out of my work, out of my social circle," she said. "Because I want a clean, cancer-free life. And I believe I can have that - even as a rock star." Best known for raspy-voiced hits such as "Come to My Window," Etheridge was nominated for a Grammy this year, but thought she might be too sick to perform. Then came the call that Grammy organizers were giving Joplin a lifetime-achievement award and wanted Etheridge to honor her by singing one of her songs. "I went, 'Holy Cow!'" she recalled. That also was the reaction of the audience after Etheridge finished the tune. The rocker says she could feel the emotion in the room. "I felt great. I felt loved. I felt honored. I felt strong. I felt happy. I was in the place that I loved," she said. Tale of courage a stark warning to all Melissa Etheridge's story of suddenly discovering a large tumor in her breast illustrates the importance of early and regular screening for cancer for all women. "There's no benefit in waiting, and there could be big benefits in finding a lump early," said Dr. Julia Smith, director of NYU's breast-cancer screening and prevention program. Smith recommends that any woman who believes she may be at a higher risk for breast cancer - because of family history, for instance - should have an assessment done at a major cancer center. For all other women, the bare minimum in screening is: Monthly self-examination starting in their 20s. Clinical exam by a primary care physician or gynecologist during routine checkups. Mammograms every one to two years between the ages of 40 and 49, and every year over age 50. "Breast cancer is a story of women taking their health into their own hands," Smith says. Originally published on February 19, 2005