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'Both dealing with issues': Topp Twins give health update amid cancer battle

Author
NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Thu, 2 Mar 2023, 3:01pm
The Topp Twins are continuing their battle with cancer.
The Topp Twins are continuing their battle with cancer.

'Both dealing with issues': Topp Twins give health update amid cancer battle

Author
NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Thu, 2 Mar 2023, 3:01pm

Last year, the Topp Twins revealed they had both been diagnosed with breast cancer, and now Lynda has given an update on their treatments.

Speaking on the AM show with host Ryan Bridge, the beloved Kiwi entertainer said, “We’re both doing okay, like my mum says ‘you can’t kill a weed,’” she said.

“We’re both dealing with issues. Jools is on a new treatment, it’s not chemo, it’s something a bit newer and exciting, so she’s dealing with that.”

While she did not share any more information about the treatment, the star revealed in an interview with the Herald last year, that Jools’ cancer had metastasized and she is on a programme where she takes pills and has monthly injections.

The Topp Twins (Lynda and Jools) shared images of the pair going through cancer treatment.

The Topp Twins (Lynda and Jools) shared images of the pair going through cancer treatment.

Meanwhile, Lynda continues with her own cancer battle, and told Bridge she had to stop her chemotherapy treatment as an additional diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy – nerve damage caused by chemo – was making the treatment unsustainable.

She said it’s “just something you have to deal with each day” adding, “but we’re happy, we’re alive and we’re very excited”.

The Topp Twins revealed their cancer diagnosis in March last year in an exclusive interview with TVNZ’s Sunday.

Appearing on the show, the sisters shared that Jools was first to be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 at the age of 48.

Jools endured gruelling chemotherapy and the removal of her left breast which enabled her to recover.

The Topp Twins (Lynda and Jools) shared images of the pair going through cancer treatment.

The Topp Twins (Lynda and Jools) shared images of the pair going through cancer treatment.

However, in 2021 she began to feel unwell again and shortly after, sister Lynda found out she also had breast cancer.

The diagnosis came at the peak of New Zealand’s Covid battle, meaning the two were forced to be apart in order to protect each other.

“So, all of a sudden, boom. In Covid, I can’t be with Jools. I came out of the office at St George’s Hospital and I sat in the car. I just burst into tears,” Lynda shared with Sunday.

“I don’t know what’s harder - having cancer or not having Jools here,” she added.

Lynda was diagnosed with Grade 3 invasive breast cancer in December 2021. She underwent a double mastectomy and endured a harrowing six months of intensive chemotherapy.

Since revealing their diagnosis, Lynda has made multiple media appearances, however Jools continues her battle behind closed doors.

The pair became Kiwi television staples with their show The Topp Twins, where they played characters Camp Mother and Camp Leader, and Ken and Ken.

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