Olivia Williams says she’ll never be cancer-free

LONDON

“The Crown” actress Olivia Williams has opened up about her battle with pancreatic cancer, revealing that years of misdiagnoses have left her with a condition she will never fully recover from.

In an interview published by The Times on April 19, the 56-year-old actress shared her frustration over the four-year delay in receiving an accurate diagnosis.

Williams first began experiencing troubling symptoms, including chronic fatigue, aching limbs and persistent diarrhea, in 2014. Over the course of four years, she consulted with ten different doctors in three countries. During that time, she was incorrectly diagnosed with conditions ranging from Lupus and IBS to perimenopause. One doctor even referred her for psychiatric evaluation.

It wasn’t until 2018 that a doctor in Los Angeles discovered the truth: Williams had a rare pancreatic tumor known as VIPoma. Unfortunately, by then the cancer had already spread to her liver.

“If someone had well diagnosed me in the four years I’d been saying I was ill... then one operation possibly could have cleared the whole thing and I could describe myself as cancer-free, which I cannot now ever be,” she said.

Now undergoing treatments that include microwave ablation to target recurring metastases, Williams described the experience as “playing whack-a-mole.” She noted that new cancerous growths often appear just before holidays, including Christmas, compounding the emotional toll.

Despite the challenges, the “Rushmore” and “The Sixth Sense” actress remains focused on advocating for early detection. She is currently supporting Pancreatic Cancer U.K., the official charity of this year’s London Marathon, and is calling for the development of a simple, inexpensive test that could dramatically improve survival rates.