Melissa Claire Egan, star of The Young and the Restless, who plays Chelsea Lawson, recently opened up to her followers on Instagram about a serious health concern.
In a heartfelt post, Egan revealed she was diagnosed with coronary heart disease in January. She wrote, “I wanted to share that in late January I was diagnosed with Coronary heart disease. Thanks to early detection, and medicine, I will be okay!”
Egan acknowledged her normally private nature, adding, “I’m a private person, but this seemed TOO IMPORTANT NOT TO SHARE. Especially for women.”
She credited her long-time physician and a specialist for catching the condition early. “My brilliant doctor of 20+ years @drthaisaliabadi sent me to a wonderful cardiologist @ghalichimd when some bloodwork came back high, and through a Heart calcium scan he found plaque in my LAD artery (known as the ‘widow maker’). It’s mild so far and tends to be genetic, but rare for a 44 year old woman. This could have caused the plaque to chip off and cause a fatal heart attack or stroke any time over the next 5-10 years, maybe even sooner.”
Melissa Claire Egan Reveals Diagnosis
Egan described the emotional impact of the diagnosis: “Later that night after I was diagnosed, I laid with my sons, putting them to bed, feeling so grateful to God and my doctors that I found this early. But I couldn’t stop thinking about all the other women (and men) that might have this disease and not know it. It is under-tested and under-recognized.”
She encouraged her followers to prioritize heart health. She wrote, “We all are so good about getting our mammograms every year, but we don’t check our heart health. It is imperative that you do! Cardiovascular disease is the Number 1 killer of women, causing 1 in 3 deaths each year.”
Egan also shared practical advice: “Tell your doctor you want to be evaluated for coronary heart disease risk. A takeaway from my situation, for your blood tests ask your doctor to specifically look for Lipoprotein(a) and ApoB levels. Also you MUST ASK YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT A ‘Heart Calcium scan.’”
As fans know, Egan has already tackled challenging health-related storylines on screen as Chelsea on Y&R and Annie on All My Children. We send her our love and support as she manages this personal health challenge in real life.
Photo Credit: JPI Studios.
Follow Soap Opera News on Google News. Stay up to date with all the latest news, spoilers, recaps, interviews, and more.
Leave a Reply