Chadwick Boseman’s wife has shared that he received a clear scan from cancer around the time Black Panther hit cinemas.
Simone Ledward Boseman discussed her late husband in an interview with Craig Melvin on TODAY, describing the emotions of watching him be celebrated worldwide following the film’s release.
Boseman was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2016, yet continued to work throughout his illness.
When he died in 2020, the news stunned many fans because his condition had been kept largely private and few people understood how unwell he was.
“I didn’t know that he was experiencing anything until he had already been to the doctor twice,” Simone said.
“It all seemed to come about very suddenly. It was a matter of weeks that he started not feeling well.”
Ledward Boseman also became emotional as she recalled how 2018 brought a moment of relief: she said her husband had a clear scan that year. She explained that the joy surrounding the success of Black Panther was intertwined with a more personal celebration happening privately within their family.
“It’s harder to talk about the good times than it is the bad,” she told Melvin.
“[Black] Panther came out in February [2018], to see how deeply, deeply, and globally impactful that film was just, I don’t have any words for it.”
Reflecting on the recognition he was finally receiving, she said: “He was so deserving of all the success, and kids are dressing up like him.
“People are buying out theaters and taking school kids to watch this film, and he’s just being celebrated everywhere we go.”
She added that the public celebrations of the movie’s impact coincided with a private sense of hope at home: “It did feel like, they didn’t know we were celebrating that he had a clear scan, but we were celebrating that, too. It felt like we got another chance.”
Boseman was 43 when he died from colon cancer in 2020.
Colon cancer diagnoses have been rising among younger adults, typically described in cancer reporting as people under the age of 50.
In the US, estimates suggest roughly 160,000 cases could be recorded this year, with around 55,000 deaths.
Data has indicated an increase of about three percent in patients under 50 since 2018.
One challenge with colon cancer is that it can be difficult to detect early because it may not cause clear, obvious symptoms in its initial stages, meaning some people do not realize something is wrong until the disease has progressed.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.