"You have an army behind you": Chris Evert receives support from Kim Clijsters, Judy Murray, Ajla Tomljanovic, & more as she revisits her cancer fight
Chris Evert bravely revisited her battle with cancer via a post on social media. The American legend, who suffered two bouts of cancer, received admiration and support from many former and current players.
Evert was diagnosed with stage 1 ovarian cancer for the first time in December 2021. Despite undergoing a preventative hysterectomy, cancerous cells were discovered in resected fallopian tubes. Ovarian cancer had claimed the life of Evert's younger sister, Jeanne, in 2020, following a two-year battle.
Doctors were confident that the cancer wouldn't return after the former World No. 1 underwent chemotherapy. However, that was not the case, as Chris Evert announced in December 2023 that the cancer had returned. The disease was caught early once again. After another course of chemotherapy and surgery, the 69-year-old is seemingly cancer-free again.
Evert recently looked back at the ordeal. She shared a throwback image of her hair loss due to the procedures during her treatment and expressed gratitude towards everyone who gave her strength to the disease.
"Not so long ago! 🙏 grateful for everyday, everything, everyone! ❤️," the Instagram ost was captioned.
Several tennis stars reacted to Evert's post, with Judy Murray cheering the American on and sending her a message from herself and her two sons, Jaime and Andy Murray. Former players Kim Clijsters and Daniela Hantuchova and Australian stars Ajla Tomjlanovic and Daria Saville also showered love on Evert.
"You’re rocking it, as only you can. You have an army behind you - family, friends and fans. 💕 from 3 of your Scottish ones admirers xx," Judy Murray wrote.
"❤️ Always beautiful ❤️," Kim Clijsters commented.
"Love you sm 🩷🩷🩷," Ajla Tomjlanovic wrote.
"You are always beautiful Chrissie 💚💚💚," Daniela Hantuchova said.
"❤️❤️ ," Daria Saville commented.
"You can’t live in fear" - Chris Evert on life after battle with cancer
Chris Evert has been open about her battle with ovarian cancer and frequently talked about the journey and its impact on her life. She appeared for an interview with the New York Times in July this year and shared that her doctors are confident that the cancer is gone for good. Evert is cautiously optimistic, and doctors have assured her that she will not die from this disease.
“Doctors are always hopeful. Obviously, if something returned the second time, there’s more of a chance that it’s going to return. Some people have cancer once and it goes away, and they live for 30 or 40 more years. That’s a wonderful story. It’s not always like that. But my doctor told me I won’t die from this,” Chris Evert said.
Evert projected confidence in living her fearless life after cancer and stated that she exercises regularly to remain as healthy as possible. She also emphasized the need to keep her medical records up to date.
“You can’t live in fear. I just have to keep exercising, try and be as healthy as I can, and be up on all my CT scans and my appointments with the doctor,” Evert said.
Evert missed the 2024 Australian Open broadcast due to her second cancer diagnosis. The 18-time Grand Slam champion joined ESPN's broadcast team in 2011 and has covered the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open for the network.