Cynthia Nixon has been secretly battling breast cancer.
The 'Sex and the City' actress was diagnosed with the illness in 2006 but decided to remain quiet as she didn't want it in the public eye.
She revealed to US TV show 'Good Morning America': "I went for a completely routine mammogram and I was contacted by my gynaecologist.
"She said, 'Well I have some news, it's not so great.'
"I was very cognisant of it. If it's going to happen, this is the best way for it to happen - that it's found so early, and we can just get right on it.
"I kept it secret because I didn't want paparazzi at the hospital."
Cynthia - who shot to fame as lawyer Miranda Hobbs in the hit US TV show - says she "made a big point" of telling her two children, Samantha, 11, and five-year-old Charles, she had cancer.
Cynthia - whose own mother successfully fought breast cancer - said: "I basically told them they found some cancer in my right breast. It's very small and it's very early.
"I'm going to have an operation, they're going to take it out, and then we're going to have six-and-a-half weeks of radiation, every weekday. This is what grandma went through, and I'm going to be fine."
However, Cynthia - who is now in remission and at present is cancer-free - admits lover Christine Marinoni took the news quite badly.
She added: "My girlfriend was the one doing the eating. She was in a panic - and just trying to calm herself down any way she could."
The 42-year-old actress began dating Christine four years ago after splitting with Danny Moses, the father of her children.
Cynthia Nixon's secret cancer battle
