Jane Fonda Opens Up About Facing Death

The term “living legend” gets thrown around quite a bit, and it’s usually not very accurate. There are exceptions, though, including the actor Jane Fonda. She is more than just another memorable face: at this point, it’s fair to say that Fonda is the face of Hollywood!

However, our time to enjoy her famous face may be running out. Recently, she revealed a stunning health diagnosis that has this actress now pondering the end of her life.

What is this diagnosis, though? And how will her reaction to it make you fall in love with Jane Fonda all over again? Keep reading to find out!

Jane Fonda: Hollywood legend

Most actors fit neatly into one niche or another. However, what makes Jane Fonda stand out is that she has so different gears as an actor!

For example, she is a captivating sex symbol in Barbarella, a movie that combines kink and kitsch in equal measure. And she’s downright hilarious in Fun With Dick and Jane, a movie that effortlessly blends comedy and social satire. She is also the quintessential actor’s actor in Klute, one of six different movies for which she won Best Actress.

In retrospect, Jane Fonda helped to reinvent our idea of what films could be even as she reinvented herself in film after film.

A heartbreaking confession on social media

Part of Jane Fonda’s charm is that she always knows the best way to reach her fans. In recent years, she has embraced social media as a way of giving updates about her life. And as The Hollywood Reporter reports, Fonda took to Instagram in early September to reveal that she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

In her post, she expressed gratitude and hope. “I feel very lucky,” she wrote, pointing out that 80% of people with this diagnosis survive. “I’m also lucky because I have health insurance and access to the best doctors and treatments… Almost every family in America has had to deal with cancer at one time or another, and far too many don’t have access to the quality health care I am receiving, and this is not right.”

This is Fonda at her most impressive. Even when revealing a potentially-fatal diagnosis, she is thinking about how countless other people out there are suffering, especially when it comes to climate activism.

Fonda’s climate activism: worlds collide

Jane Fonda has been a self-proclaimed climate activist for many years. And now that she has been diagnosed with cancer, she sees a link between her current condition and the industries she has been so devoted to fighting.

As Vulture reports, she told Instagram followers about how her cancer is “fossil fuel-based.” And she wrote that “I’m doing chemo for six months and am handling the treatments quite well and, believe me, I will not let any of this interfere with my climate activism.”

Interestingly, her diagnosis has helped the actor focus more on why activism is so important “Cancer is a teacher and I’m paying attention to the lessons it holds for me,” she wrote. “One thing it’s shown me already is the importance of community. Of growing and deepening one’s community so that we are not alone. And the cancer, along with my age — almost 85 — definitely teaches the importance of adapting to new realities.”

No stranger to cancer

How is Jane Fonda able to face this cancer diagnosis with such fearlessness? Some of this is probably due to her personality and persistence. But some of it surely comes from the fact that she is no stranger to dealing with cancer!

As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Fonda previously admitted to British Vogue that she’s  “had a lot of cancer.” In the past, these have been cancers she was able to quickly remove after they were identified. For example, she has previously discussed having cancer removed from her lips. And back in 2010, she had a non-invasive breast tumor removed from her body.

Rather than wear Fonda down, these previous cancer struggles have turned her into even more of a fighter. And she is now bringing the strength and energy of a fighter to her latest fight with cancer.

Riding the chemotherapy rollercoaster

As of the time of this writing, Jane Fonda is about halfway through her chemotherapy treatments. And she has opened up about how these treatments impact her ability to be productive.

According to Yahoo, her treatments have been relatively positive, even though they are a bit of a rollercoaster. “I’m not losing my hair. I don’t feel nauseous,” she said. “The week when I get the chemo is hard, but then after that, I feel good. I feel very strong.” And the treatments haven’t slowed her down as much as you might think. “Even the days that I get chemo, I still do a workout,” she said. “It’s slow and not what it used to be, but still, I’m moving and keeping strong.”

Throughout all of it, everyone has been impressed with the level of Zen calm Fonda has. What’s her secret? According to the star, she is very content with the life she has lived. “I’ve lived a good life. I’ve lived a productive and intentional life,” she said. “And dying is part of life. I hope that I can be an example to young people so they won’t be afraid of getting older.”

However, she does have a simple message to the young people of today if they wish to grow as old and happy as she is: “you just have to take care of yourself.” As long as you take care of yourself as well as Fonda has taken care of herself, you may find the peace, joy, and downright serenity that she has discovered and embraced.