THURSDAY, June 6, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Marcia Cross, known for her role on “Desperate Housewives,” was diagnosed and treated for anal cancer. Now she wants to call attention to the disease, CBS News reports.

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Cross hopes to breakdown the stigma around the disease.

“I know there are people who are ashamed. You have cancer! You have to then also feel ashamed? Like you did something bad, you know, because it took up residence in your anus? I mean, come on, really. There’s enough on your plate,” Cross told CBS. “Even for me, it took a while. Anus, anus, anus! Ha. You just have to get used to it,” she said.

Cross said she’s going great. “I’m feeling back to normal though it’s a new normal,” she said. “I don’t think I’ll ever take it for granted. I’m the girl who goes to the bathroom now and I go ‘Yes! It’s great what my body can do! I’m so grateful.'”

By sharing her story, Cross hopes others will get up the nerve to talk with their doctors about symptoms such as rectal bleeding, a lump in the anus, or difficulty going to the bathroom.

In 2019, some 8,300 Americans will be diagnosed with anal cancer. Actress Farrah Fawcett died from the illness in 2009.

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