14 DAY TRIAL // For the past several weeks, rumors have been picking up that country legend and actress Dolly Parton had been diagnosed with stomach cancer and that her condition was deteriorating. Worry not y’all, there’s no truth to them, and Dolly herself is making sure to set the record straight.
She did have a medical issue, but it was nothing as serious as cancer, she says in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. And when one of the most candid celebrities out there comes clean about her health, how can you doubt she’s telling the truth? You can’t.
Dolly had kidney stones
Unlike many celebrities, Dolly has never shied away from speaking her mind including on personal matters, like her love life, her opinions and beliefs, and much more. In other words, a statement on the cancer rumors that were threatening to get completely out of control was bound to come.
And Dolly doesn’t disappoint, getting straight to the point: she doesn’t have breast cancer, just kidney stones.
“There is absolutely no truth at all that I have stomach cancer,” she says. “I love and appreciate everyone’s concern. I had [kidney stones] removed three weeks ago and I am doing just fine!”
Proof that she’s “just fine” is to be found in the fact that she’s already back to work, shooting for the NBC movie “Coat of Many Colors” and promoting the DreamMore Resort at Dollywood.
Dolly Parton, a rumor magnet
She might be candid in her dealings with the press, but that doesn’t mean that Dolly doesn’t have her fair share of secrets. So, while she will discuss most topics when she’s on promotional duties, she will also make a point of trying to fly under the radar the rest of the time.
Paradoxically, this breeds even more speculation and rumor, some of it refusing to go away even when she tries to take a public stand against it.
Take for instance the urban legend that she has her entire upper body, including the breasts and arms covered in tattoos, which goes back many years and resurfaces in the spotlight with regularity. According to rumor, Dolly is quite a walking piece of body art, as her upper body is entirely covered in flowers and butterflies.
She denied it many times in the past, but the report keeps resurfacing. For some reason, the Internet loves the idea of Dolly covered in tats. So yes, she’s always been a rumor magnet, no matter what she does to prevent it.