Nearly six years on from his death and Chadwick Boseman's widow is sharing more details about the actor's battle with cancer.
The Black Panther and 21 Bridges star privately battled colon cancer for four years up until his death in August 2020. Boseman was just 43 years old at the time of his passing.
His death shocked the world in light of him keeping his diagnosis private. Reportedly he didn't even tell his Black Panther cast mates about it, despite the group being extremely close.
Boseman also didn't tell Marvel and Disney about his illness because he'd hoped that he would live long enough to film Black Panther 2, NME reported. Tragically this wasn't the case and he died a year before they started production.
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Unfortunately, Boseman's death aged 43 from colon cancer isn't an uncommon thing in the US. It's now the one of the most common cancers for men and women. As of 2024, it was the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in America, says USA Facts.
Boseman was diagnosed in 2016 with Stage 3 colon cancer. His wife, Simone Ledward Boseman was unaware that he had been experiencing any symptoms until he had already been to the doctor twice.
"It all seemed to come about very suddenly," Simone said on TODAY. " It was a matter of weeks that he started not feeling well."
She went on to describe colon cancer as being 'really tricky in that way'.
"Because he was so young, he wasn’t even at the point where he would consider having a colonoscopy," Simone added.
Symptoms of colon cancer include changes in bowel habits such as diarrhoea, constipation, or narrowing of the stool, as well as blood in the stool, typically of a bright red or dark, tar-like color.
Some people may also experience abdominal cramps and bloating.
Simone also discussed why her late husband decided to keep his cancer battle private.
"Chad was not a person that would have wanted to be treated any differently because people knew that he was sick," she said.
Going on to share why he continued to work during his treatment, Simone shared: "The work is what was keeping him moving, so he didn’t want the work to suffer just because he was sick.
"He didn’t want to be handled with kid gloves because people thought he wasn’t going to be able to do his job and slide underneath falling cabinets and run across fields."
While he was sick, Boseman filmed movies like Black Panther, 21 Bridges, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Marshall, and Da 5 Bloods.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.
Topics: Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther, Colon cancer, News, Celebrity, Health, Cancer
Niamh Shackleton