Dancing With the Stars alum Edyta Śliwińska has good news after battling cancer for a year.
“Exactly a year ago, I woke up from a semi-conscious state, and a man in a blue coat looked at me and said something no one ever wants to hear: ‘It’s cancer,’” the professional dancer, 45, wrote via Instagram on Wednesday, August 13. “I didn’t know if I would live to see today. I didn’t know how long I had left, how serious it was, or how my life would change.”
One year later, Śliwińska shared that there has been improvement in her health since undergoing treatment.
“Today, I wear this scar under my belly as a reminder that life is incredibly fragile,” she continued. “It can crumble beneath you at any moment. Appreciate it, live it like there’s no tomorrow, enjoy it, and take care of your health. I’m the luckiest person on earth to be here today, and every breath I take is filled with gratitude and love for what truly matters in life.”
Śliwińska added that she now feels “healthier” than ever and wants to share what alterations she’s made to help others who find themselves in a similar situation to hers.
“I made changes to my lifestyle, diet, environment, and exercise routine,” she wrote. “I will share what I’ve learned in the hope that each and every one of you can achieve a healthier self, so no one ever delivers the news to you that I received on that hospital bed.”
In August 2024, Śliwińska announced that she underwent a procedure for an undisclosed health issue. Three months later, she revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer.
“The last three months have been the hardest and most stressful in my life. We hear people say, ‘Appreciate every moment,’ ‘Be grateful,’ and ‘Live your life as if there’s no tomorrow.’ We all know we should do these things, but somehow, we forget,” she wrote via Instagram at the time. “We get caught up in everyday life, in our little problems and worries. But what if one day you woke up and found out that you have cancer? And you don’t know whether you have months or years to live.”
She continued: “You don’t know if you will get to see your kids grow up. Suddenly, these slogans about embracing every moment become very real. The truth is that, cancer or not, you don’t know how long you have left.”
Śliwińska is best known for being one of the pros on DWTS. She competed on the show’s first 10 seasons and had memorable partners including Joey Lawrence, Cameron Mathison and more. While she never won the mirrorball trophy, she came close during season 6 when she and NFL alum Jason Taylor were crowned as the runners-up.
