What Jackie Collins's Story Can Help Us Understand About Breast Cancer

The news

Jackie Collins was a best-selling novelist whose glamorous, sharply observed books sold in the hundreds of millions of copies. She died on September 19, 2015, at age 77. In interviews shortly before her death, and through her family afterward, it became public that she had been living with breast cancer for several years while keeping her illness largely private and continuing to write and work.

That is what she and her family chose to share. We do not speculate about private medical details beyond what was made public.

Why people are talking about it

Collins's story struck many people because she had carried a serious diagnosis so privately for so long. Her decision to live on her own terms, and to speak about it only near the end, opened conversations about how differently people choose to handle illness, and about breast cancer itself.

What this cancer means

According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women after skin cancer. NCI notes that breast cancer can also occur in men, though this is far less common. It explains that there are different types of breast cancer, and that mammograms can detect breast cancer early, possibly before it has spread.

When cancer spreads from the breast to distant parts of the body, it is described as metastatic. Understanding what a specific diagnosis and stage mean is something a healthcare team can explain for any individual.

What to remember

How someone handles a diagnosis is deeply personal; there is no single right way. Collins's choice to keep her illness private was hers to make. Her story is not medical guidance, and it cannot tell anyone how their own cancer will behave. What it can do is remind us that breast cancer is common, that awareness matters, and that support and information should be available to anyone who wants them.

Awareness, screening, and prevention

NCI describes mammography as a screening test that can find breast cancer early, sometimes before it can be felt. Guidance on when to begin and how often to screen depends on age and personal risk, and is best discussed with a healthcare professional. Our free screening check-up tool can help you think through what may apply to you, and NCI's guidance on mammograms offers plain-language detail.

Turning a story into something useful

Knowing that breast cancer is common, that mammograms can find it early, and that every person handles illness in their own way are calm, practical takeaways from Collins's story. Supporting free, trustworthy cancer education helps this kind of information reach more people.

Questions to ask a healthcare team

• When should I start breast cancer screening, and how often?
• Do my personal or family history change my risk?
• What breast changes should prompt me to seek care?
• Where can I find reliable, plain-language information about breast cancer?