Suzanne Somers: Olivia Newton-John ‘taught me not to be afraid’ of breast cancer

Following the death of Olivia Newton-John in August 2022, Suzanne Somers offered a special tribute to the singer, based on the “sisterhood” they both belonged to: Women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and lived with the specter of the disease for decades.

“Everyone would want an Olivia Newton-John in their life,” Somers said in an interview with the Daily Mail last year. Somers, who was about to turn 77, died Sunday from breast cancer, a little more than a year after Newton-John’s death.

The Australian singer and star of “Grease” was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, recovered and used that experience to become a well-known advocate for breast cancer research and to support other women living with the disease.

“Olivia taught me not to be afraid when I was diagnosed with breast cancer,” Somers said.

Now, people are offering tributes to Somers. The San Bruno native, who became famous by playing a ditsy blonde in the 1970s sex-romp sitcom, “Three’s Company,” was first diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer in 2001, the New York Times said. She underwent a lumpectomy and radiation but declined radiation at the time.

Somers indicated to the Daily Mail that Newton-John, another iconic female star from the 1970s, reached out to her soon after her first bout with cancer. “Olivia provided great comfort for me when diagnosed 25 years ago. Her fight was my fight, as she won, I won.”

“There is a sisterhood that grows larger every year,” Somers continued. “It’s a sisterhood you never want to join but when allowed entry you find great comfort with other ‘sisters.’

“She taught all of us so much through her bravery and ‘never give up’ philosophy. We got strength through Olivia and her example of life.”

In 2008, Somers told CBS News that her cancer had returned and that it was “inoperable.” But she soon learned she had been misdiagnosed.

“For six days, six doctors confirmed I had inoperable cancer. I went into that valley of fear. I saw my death, it was horrible,” Somers told CBS News.

At the time of her interview with the Daily Mail in 2022, Somers said she was cancer free. Whatever happened with her cancer since then, Somers appeared to live up to Newton-John’s advice and put in every effort to lead a full life.

Growing up in San Bruno, Somers was kicked out of Catholic high school when nuns discovered love letters she had written to a boyfriend, the New York Times said. She graduated from Capuchino High School and attended Lone Mountain College, later University of San Francisco, but dropped out in 1965 when she found out she was pregnant.

An unhappy marriage to her child’s father ended in divorce. Somers supported herself first as a model, then as an actor. She won small parts in TV and film, including in “American Graffiti” in 1973, before she landed the role as Chrissy Snow on the hit show “Three’s Company.”

While playing the stereotypical dumb blonde on the show, Somers was anything but and demanded a raise to be paid in line with her male co-star, John Ritter. That act of bravery led to Somers being fired, but she thrived nonetheless. She continued to work in TV and in movies, but became even more ubiquitous because of the way she applied her business savvy. She and her husband, Alan Hamel, developed the ThighMaster, an exercise device that made infomercial history because of Somers’ “leggy” ads, showing customers how they can “squeeze, squeeze” their way “to shapely hips and thighs,” the New York Times said.

The ThighMaster was the early signature product in a health and diet empire Somers and Hamel built, which was largely based on Somer’s sex-positive image and her public defiance of aging, the New York Times said.

Their products included health and diet books, cosmetics, branded salt rubs and protein shakes. Somers also faced pushback from the medical community, first because of her promotion of alternative therapies for cancer treatment, CBS News reported. The actor also encouraged people to try bioidentical hormone-replacement therapy, a controversial anti-aging practice that replenishes hormones such as progesterone and testosterone with plant-based duplicates, the New York Times said.

Somers told the New York Times in 2020 that she had been leaning on hormone creams and supplements made from yam extracts for 25 years. “Aging is about worn out parts,” she told the Times, adding that the results are evident in her youthful hair, relatively wrinkle-free skin and her bedroom prowess.