American actress Busy Philipps has revealed that she spent years feeling as though her brain was 'broken' before doctors discovered a rare malignant tumour in her frontal lobe.
The 47-year-old actress, who had no obvious symptoms such as seizures, underwent surgery after a full-body MRI unexpectedly detected the growth, leaving her to question whether intense emotional changes she had previously blamed on perimenopause may have been connected to the tumour.
Philipps said close friend and former Dawson's Creek co-star Michelle Williams reminded her that she had repeatedly complained about something feeling wrong with her brain in the years before her diagnosis.
'She said, "Busy, you have been saying for the past two years, My brain feels broken,"' Philipps told PEOPLE.
The Freaks and Geeks star said she had felt as though something was 'misfiring' and struggled to understand what was happening.
Philipps also recalled experiencing 'extreme emotional reactions,' including crying until she vomited and sending 'inflammatory' texts when angry. She had previously believed the changes could be related to perimenopause.
However, her neurosurgeon, Dr John Golfinos, did not confirm that the tumour was responsible for those experiences, telling Philipps that the connection was uncertain.
Philipps' brain tumour diagnosis came after she underwent a Prenuvo full-body MRI on 12 February.
She had become interested in the scan after reading about it on Instagram. She did not have obvious symptoms of a brain tumour, but said she felt compelled to undergo the screening.
Her primary care doctor had previously told her there was 'no need' for the scan because she was young and healthy and her annual blood work was normal.
Philipps nearly cancelled the appointment amid an emotional week. Her friend and former Dawson's Creek co-star James Van Der Beek had died from colon cancer the previous day, while she was juggling work meetings and family commitments.
The scan ultimately detected a lesion on her brain, leading doctors to order further testing.
A subsequent MRI confirmed the seriousness of the discovery. Neurologist Dr Orrin Devinsky reviewed the results and told Philipps the tumour needed to be removed.
She underwent an approximately five-hour operation on 2 March, during which surgeons removed a 2.6cm mass from her brain.
A biopsy identified the tumour as a grade 2 oligodendroglioma, a rare, slow-growing type of brain tumour. Doctors said it is considered malignant because of its potential to regrow over time, although it has a more favourable prognosis than other malignant gliomas.
