Erin Andrews Opens Up Why She Kept Her Cancer Quiet

Erin Andrews is no stranger to the spotlight. And as an NFL broadcaster, she's used to being one of the few women in a male-dominated industry.

That's one of the reasons she said she felt she had to keep it. diagnosis of cervical cancer calm back in 2017. “It was really hard. I was silent when I was dealing with cancer because it was cervical cancer. It was a very personal cancer,” Andrews tells POPSUGAR. “I work with a lot of men. “I didn’t want to talk about the Ravens defense and my cervix at the dinner table.” But one day she shared this news with her team on the Fox channel and on “Dancing with the Stars” (she was hosting the show at the time), everyone was “so supportive.”

But now, almost 10 years later, Andrews is speaking out unapologetically and encouraging others to get tested for cancer through Aflac cancer screening campaign. After all, it was early detection it changed the trajectory of her experience with the disease. Without it, “my life could have been a lot worse. I mean, we could be talking about a completely different path here,” Andrews says.

Andrews was first diagnosed after a routine check-up. “..[I] thought nothing of it. And then a couple days later, I was sitting in a conference room getting ready for Week 3 of the NFL season, and my gynecologist called me and said, 'You have cancer and we need to do surgery right away,'” Andrews says. Looking back, she's grateful she had a mom who always encouraged her to keep up with routine doctor appointments. But after sharing her story with others, the reality is: “People just don't go to the doctor,” Andrews says.

“Before the birth of our son, we had two losses. So it was a real rollercoaster.”

Andrews gets it all when it comes to anxiety, fear of bad news and time pressure. But she hopes that by continuing to talk about her experience, people will put it all aside and prioritize their health. Andrews says that after she did this and received the diagnosis, she was able to address other areas of her health that could be affected by her cancer, such as fertility.

“…My oncologist sat us down and just said, look, now you need to get serious about egg freezing because we don't know if we're going to need a really invasive surgery like a hysterectomy or what kind of treatment you're going to need,” Andrews says. Although Andrews eventually became a mother through surrogacy, she says the journey was and continues to be difficult.

“We had a miscarriage in the spring. Before our son was born, we had two losses. So it was a real rollercoaster. Again, I wouldn't recommend it to people, but it's real life,” she says.

Still, Andrews says she's grateful for where she is today. But the experience wouldn't have been as rewarding if she hadn't opened up about her health problems. “It’s difficult to talk about your health. It's hard to talk about it when it's so personal,” Andrews says. “I'm not saying you need to go out and talk on social media about your diagnosis, but talking to others, getting information and, again, encouraging the people in your life to get tested is very important.”

These days, Andrews' schedule is busier than ever with soccer season in full swing, an active two-year-old and a podcast, but she still makes time for her health, including working out. Regular exercise actually helps her feel calm in the chaos. “I feel like training is very important for me mentally. If I can sweat and just push myself a little bit on the treadmill and do some strength training, that means a lot too… today I went to Barry's Bootcamp and busted my butt and it felt damn good,” she says. Another obsession lately: NAD injections. “Tomorrow I’m getting an IV to check my body and just make sure I’m taking care of myself.”

It's all part of an effort to cope with the toll that work takes on her body. “Look, this is entertainment. It's not like I'm curing cancer or saving lives, but it's a lot of stress. It’s live,” she says. “And I'm just trying to be gentle with myself.”

Mercy Livingston is a writer and editor with over eight years of experience covering fitness, health and nutrition for media outlets and brands such as Well+Good, Shape and Women's Health. She was the fitness editor at Peloton and has held editorial positions at Equinox, Shape and Well+Good. Mercy is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer and Women's Fitness Specialist. She is also a Certified Holistic Health Coach through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition with additional certification in Hormonal Health. He holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Southern Mississippi.