Chicago Med Star Marlyne Barrett Opens Up About Cancer Diagnosis
"Chicago Med" actress Marlyne Barrett has confirmed to People that she has been diagnosed with both uterine and ovarian cancer. Previously, the character Barrett plays on "Chicago Med," Maggie Lockwood, faced a breast cancer diagnosis, but People noted the actress only learned of her own cancer in July 2022. Of her personal experience, Barrett told the publication, "When my character went through breast cancer, I had a sea of people reach out to me through social media. They brought me courage, and so I felt a sense of inevitability to meet their hearts where they met me."
Deadline writes that Barrett is currently filming Season 8 of "Chicago Med." Barrett told People that some others on the set of the show have shaved their heads to show their support of her since Barrett chose to shave her head so as not "to give the power to chemo" when she would eventually experience hair loss as a side effect of the treatment.
Marlyne Barrett has had to make adjustments amid her diagnosis
Despite shaving her head, Marlyne Barrett told People that her character, Maggie Lockwood, already wears a wig. However, she noted that the costume department has had to adjust her costuming because her clothing size has changed due to her football-sized tumor. Barrett added of her decision to continue working, "It brings me a lot of reprieve to think about something other than, 'When is my next chemo shift?' and, 'How am I going to hug my children?'" (per People).
When her character dealt with cancer on "Chicago Med," Barrett opened up about the topic in an interview with TVLine. "Cancer, in itself, is not an easy subject. When you think about the totality of society that's at least going to be exposed to it, meet someone who went through it or will have it themselves, that's humanity, in general," she told the publication. "No matter what language you speak, no matter what race you are, what class you are, it's like a commonality. So researching that and understanding what the writers were going to write ... that process became my focus, my most specific focus."
After sharing her diagnosis publicly, Barrett posted a message of thanks on her Instagram account, writing in the caption of her photo, "Thank you for the encouragement. It means a lot to me and my family at this time."