Christina Applegate revealed yesterday she had a double mastectomy and will undergo months-long reconstructive surgery to regain her figure.
The "Samantha Who?" beauty said she had the radical operation three weeks ago and she's now free of breast cancer.
In an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America," an upbeat Applegate comically boasted that her breasts will stand the test of time, thanks to advances in reconstructive cosmetic surgery.
"I'm going to have cute boobs 'til I'm 90, so there's that," Applegate told "GMA's" Robin Roberts, also a breast-cancer survivor. "I'll have the best boobs in the nursing home. I'll be the envy of all the ladies around the bridge table."
Applegate disclosed her breast-cancer diagnosis earlier this month, and yesterday made her first public comments about it.
Even though the cancer was in only one breast, Applegate didn't want to take any chances.
"I just wanted to kind of be rid of it," she said. "So this was the choice I made, and it was a tough one."
Applegate's mom, Nancy Priddy, was afflicted with the disease, and the actress tested positive for the gene mutation linked to breast and ovarian cancer.
Applegate credited her mother's support for getting her through the darkest days. "She's been sort of this quiet warrior in the back and has been a great support . . . telling me that I was going to be OK," she said.
Applegate admitted her emotions ran the gamut in recent weeks.
"Sometimes, you know, I cry, and sometimes I scream, and I get really angry, and I get really like, you know, into wallowing in self-pity sometimes," she said.
"And I think that it's all part of healing, and anyone who's going through it out there, it's OK to cry. It's OK to fall on the ground and just scream if you want to."
While Applegate had plenty of emotional backing, writer Jessica Queller didn't enjoy such a benefit when she had the same surgery in 2005. Queller penned "Pretty is What Changes: Impossible Choices, the Breast Cancer Gene, and How I Defied My Destiny" about her decision - which she made despite her pals urging against surgery.
"Everyone thought it was insane," Queller, a writer on the CW hit "Gossip Girl," told The Post. "They wanted to do an intervention."
Cancer experts said Applegate's choice could prompt other women to act decisively. "Christina Applegate will hopefully be the brave face women will think of when they have to make this same decision," said Dr. Arnold Baskies, the American Cancer Society's chief medical officer. via
