CelebritySofia Vergarasofia vergara thyroid cancersofia-vergara-modern-family

Sofia Vergara Thyroid Cancer: Star Talks About Her Hypothyroidism Diagnosis And How It Affects Her Life

Sofia Vergara Opens Up About Her Battle With Cancer
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Senior Entertainment Reporter, HuffPost

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Not many people know about Sofia Vergara's battle with cancer. The "Modern Family" star was diagnosed with the disease when she was just 28 years old and underwent surgery to remove her thyroid.

Following the operation, Vergara, now 40, was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and has been taking the medication Synthroid to control her hormone levels every day ever since. She is now the spokeswoman for the new campaign "Follow the Script," made possible by AbbVie, which aims to educate individuals with hypothyroidism about the importance of being consistent with the treatment their doctor prescribes.

HuffPost Celebrity was on hand for the launch of the campaign at the Trump SoHo in New York City on April 17, where Vergara discussed her own battle with the condition and what she does to stay happy and healthy.

Vergara revealed that she discovered her thyroid issue while at her son Manolo's doctor's appointment in 2000. The physician convinced her to get a check-up and then found out that her thyroid was abnormal just by touching her throat. They did a biopsy and uncovered that her thyroid was, in fact, cancerous.

"They removed my thyroid and since then I have to use medication," she told reporters at the event. "I got rid of the cancer and then for me it was, ‘Oh shoot, now I have to live with this condition my whole life ... I have to be on medication my whole life and I don’t have a thyroid.' So, of course I had to make myself realize what was going on with my body and I have to say in the past ten years, I never had a problem. I’m very very straight with the way I try to do what the doctor says and I go to my doctor religiously and get my blood tests."

Vergara also makes sure to take her prescription at the same time every morning, although she does find it difficult since she doesn't get to eat for a half hour afterward.

"I have the thing [prescription bottle] in my night table and before I go to sleep I put [a pill] out, so I just open my eyes and take it," she explained. "Usually I’m a morning person, so I want to have breakfast and immediately eat and everything, so for me this is torture! Like, if I’m working it's fine because the minute I wake up I shower, so while I’m showering a half hour, an hour goes by, but when I’m on the weekend, I’m like in my bed, ‘This is torture waiting [to eat] 29 minutes … 30 minutes … ok, I can eat something!’" she joked. "But I mean it’s simple, it’s like everything –- you get used to it."

Still, don't assume the Colombian bombshell eats anything she wants. Vergara admitted she believes in moderation.

"You shouldn’t do too much of anything -- that could mean working out, that could mean dieting like crazy. I mean, I drink alcohol, but like a little bit. You have to live your life and be happy because I think being happy and not stressing all the time also helps you. You know, having your good times and being healthy," she explained. "But it’s important to go to the doctor, to have your checkups, to workout, eat healthy, everything. Do everything that you can."

But Vergara confessed that she did get a little crazy about her diet after discovering she had cancer.

"At the beginning when I had the cancer, I thought, 'I'm going to eat everything organic, everything healthy,' because you’re thinking, 'What caused this cancer?' You know, I didn’t smoke, I didn’t do many things that were unhealthy, so I did become a little crazy, but after three months I realized this is so exhausting!" she said, continuing, "It was insane, like having shots of spinach, I mean crazy! So I tried to do healthy things, but not [get] crazy."

"I think the most important part for me is my dosage and not thinking because I have hypothyroidism, [I have to be healthy]," Vergara admitted. "I think everybody should try to eat healthy and work out and exercise for everything. Even for anti-aging, you’re going to look better you’re going to feel better for everything."

Find out more about hypothyroidism at FollowTheScriptCampaign.com.

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Before You Go

10 Celebrities Who Battled Cancer Before 40
Christina Applegate(01 of10)
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The actress was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 36 in 2008. One month later, after learning she had tested positive for the BRCA1 gene (also known as the breast cancer gene), she underwent a prophylactic double mastectomy, rather than opting for radiation or chemotherapy, she told ABC's Good Morning America at the time."I didn't want to go back to the doctors every four months for testing and squishing and everything. I just wanted to kind of get rid of this whole thing for me. This was the choice that I made and it was a tough one," she said in the interview. "Sometimes, you know, I cry. And sometimes I scream. And I get really angry. And I get really upset, you know, into wallowing in self-pity sometimes. And I think that it's all part of the healing."In 2011, Applegate gave birth to her first child, daughter Sadie. "She's healed me in so many ways," she told People magazine. (credit:Getty Images)
Diem Brown(02 of10)
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The MTV star was first diagnosed with stage 2 ovarian cancer in September 2005 at just 24 years old, Glamour reported in 2006 -- one ovary, several lymph nodes and part of one fallopian tube were removed, according to the magazine."I had no idea why this was happening to me. I’m a healthy girl: I’m a vegetarian; I don’t smoke; I barely drink," she told Glamour. "I kept thinking, I have so much to do; I’m not ready to die."One month after surgery, Diem traveled to Australia for the Real World/Road Rules Challenge on MTV.Earlier this year, at age 30, Brown revealed that she is again battling ovarian cancer,People reported. Over the past several months, she's been blogging about her experience for the publication (check out a video of her post-chemo hair loss here).She wrote in a recent People.com post:
A year ... If you would have told me that after I climbed an Icelandic glacier on MTV's The Challenge, I would find a cancer-filled cyst, freeze eggs, have two surgeries, start early menopause, go through chemo for a second time and film/post my chemo hair loss process make-up free and bald, I would tell you to put me back on that glacier! However, now I can look back at those seemingly overwhelming moments, happy to be where I am: Rounding out the end of this trying journey, ready to move on from my "frenemy" cancer once and for all.
 (credit:Getty Images)
Anthony Ryan Auld(03 of10)
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The Project Runway season 9 contestant (and current contender on season two of Lifetime's Project Runway All Stars) was diagnosed with testicular cancer at age 25, Healthline.com reports. He had one testicle removed and then underwent about six months of chemotherapy in early 2009. "One of the things I got from my cancer experience is to be appreciative for every day that you're given," Auld told USA Today in November. "Just the little things in the day. Regardless of if you get to have 10 minutes with your grandmother for the day or you get to call your mom and say I love you. You really have to take those and enjoy them."After his first Project Runway appearance, Auld launched a nonprofit called ROCKONE1, supporting cancer patients and their support networks through fashion, whether that means going shopping together or designing a new outfit, according to USA Today. (credit:Getty Images)
Marissa Jaret Winokur(04 of10)
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At age 27, while auditioning for Broadway's Hairspray (which she later earned a Tony for), the actress was diagnosed with cervical cancer after a routine Pap smear, People.com reported. A few days after diagnosis, she had part of her cervix removed -- a week later, she found out the cancer had spread, meaning she needed to have a hysterectomy."Shortly after the second surgery, I got the part [in Hairspray]. I didn't have time to be sick -- I so wanted this part," she wrote for People. I repeated over and over, "I'm going to be okay."Now a married mom (via a surrogate), Winkour has had stints on "The Talk" and "Dancing With The Stars" over the past few years. And just this past October, she unveiled a dramatic 60-pound weight loss. (credit:Getty Images)
Ethan Zohn(05 of10)
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In April 2009, the then 30-year-old winner of Survivor: Africa was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin's disease, People.com reported at the time. He underwent chemotherapy and then a stem cell transplant -- 20 months after he went into remission, in September 2011, according to People, he found out the cancer had returned in his chest.Zohn underwent "smart" chemotherapy, followed by a stem cell transplant in February 2012, Everyday Health reports."I’m doing great,” he told the publication in May. "Maybe great isn’t the right word. I’m tired all the time, I don’t have a good appetite, I don’t have much energy, I’m weak, I’m skinny, I’m still bald ... but I’m getting stronger every day, and things are going according to plan in terms of my recovery. It’s all par for the course -- it’s just taking a little longer to get back to normal.” (credit:Getty Images)
Giuliana Rancic(06 of10)
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At age 36, while undergoing in vitro fertilization for the third time, the E! News Host was diagnosed with breast cancer. After previous treatments were unsuccessful, she opted to have a double mastectomy in December 2011, HuffPost reported at the time."If I had chosen to just do another lumpectomy and then do radiation and then do anti-estrogen therapy, which means two to five years of medication, that basically puts me into early menopause, then I would have to put off having a baby for several years," she told TODAY! of her decision. "So that was something we took into account. But to be honest, at the end it all came down to was just choosing to live and not looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life."On Aug. 29, 2012, Rancic and husband Bill Rancic got their happy ending with the birth of baby Edward Duke Rancic via gestational surrogate. (credit:AP)
Will Reiser(07 of10)
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At age 25, Reiser, screenwriter of the 2011 film 50/50, was experiencing strange symptoms, including weight loss, a horrible fatigue and night sweats. Convinced he was diabetic based on a Google search of his symptoms, he finally went to the doctor, who ran a series of tests. After several misdiagnoses, he was eventually properly diagnosed with a large tumor that had wrapped itself around his spine."You've just suddenly been given the news that your body is attacking itself, your body is destroying itself from the inside," he told HuffPost Healthy Living during an interview for the Generation Why series. "It was like this hurricane just swept through my body and left me in total disarray."Surgery successfully removed the tumor, and Reiser went on to write 50/50, which was inspired by his experience, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and real-life friend Seth Rogen. (credit:Getty Images)
Ryan Buell(08 of10)
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The star of A&E's series "Paranormal State" announced he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this past August, at the age of 30, People magazine reported. Keeping his fans updated on social media throughout his battle, he posted this message on December 11:
I know many amazing fans have been asking daily for updates on the status of my health. I can say that it has been the hardest year of my life, but I am also incredibly thankful for that. I had to put some of my dreams and goals aside to focus on myself. I'm also thankful for that. Although I feel that now is not the time to open up about it all, just know that I'm fighting the fight and I love you all!
 (credit:<a href="http://www.flickr.com/" role="link" class=" js-entry-link cet-external-link" data-vars-item-name="Flickr" data-vars-item-type="text" data-vars-unit-name="5bb52752e4b0d5899c1694fa" data-vars-unit-type="buzz_body" data-vars-target-content-id="http://www.flickr.com/" data-vars-target-content-type="url" data-vars-type="web_external_link" data-vars-subunit-name="before_you_go_slideshow" data-vars-subunit-type="component" data-vars-position-in-subunit="7" data-vars-position-in-unit="13">Flickr</a>:<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/35004530@N00/5924029141" role="link" class=" js-entry-link cet-external-link" data-vars-item-name="southerntabitha" data-vars-item-type="text" data-vars-unit-name="5bb52752e4b0d5899c1694fa" data-vars-unit-type="buzz_body" data-vars-target-content-id="http://www.flickr.com/photos/35004530@N00/5924029141" data-vars-target-content-type="url" data-vars-type="web_external_link" data-vars-subunit-name="before_you_go_slideshow" data-vars-subunit-type="component" data-vars-position-in-subunit="8" data-vars-position-in-unit="14">southerntabitha</a>)
Michael C. Hall(09 of10)
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In early 2010, a spokesperson for the "Dexter" star revealed that he was undergoing treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma, The Huffington Post reported. "I feel fortunate to have been diagnosed with an imminently treatable and curable condition, and I thank my doctors and nurses for their expertise and care," he said in a statement at the time.At age 38, he was just a year younger than his father was when he died from prostate cancer at 39. "I think I’ve been preoccupied since I was 11, and my father died, with the idea of the age 39: Would I live that long? What would that be like?” he told The New York Times in 2010. "To discover that I had the Hodgkin’s was alarming, but at the same time I felt kind of bemused, like: Wow. Huh. How interesting."In April 2010, his wife Jennifer Carpenter said that the actor was "fully recovered," according to the AP. (credit:AP)
Kylie Minogue(10 of10)
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The Australian singer, now 44, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005. "Everyone’s story is different. It depends what the cancer was, how it affected you, the treatment you had. There are so many variables but for a lot of people, myself included, it’s not like it happened, it was dealt with and it stops," she told Metro in 2010. "I have reminders of it every day so it definitely affects my life in a small part, so you just have to adapt and do things slightly differently ... just deal with it and move on." (credit:Getty Images)
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