Witney Carson ALMOST Missed 'DWTS' Debut Due to Terrifying Life Event
Witney Carson finally broke her silence on almost missing her debut because of a cancer diagnosis.
Carson was just 19 years old when she scored a big break on ABC's "Dancing With The Stars." The once-in-a-lifetime opportunity made her move from her hometown of Provo, Utah, to Los Angeles, California.
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, she spoke about that certain call that could skyrocket her career. However, it almost compromised her dream as she also discovered she was suffering from melanoma weeks before jetting to LA in 2014.
Melanoma, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, is the most dangerous type of skin cancer. It begins in melanocytes and can spread to other organs more rapidly if left untreated.
Carson underwent two successful surgeries to remove cancer. However, she never talked about it to anybody due to fears she would lose her chance to appear in "DWTS" first season with Cody Simpson.
"All of a sudden I get diagnosed with melanoma, and of course, being myself, I'm like 'It's fine. I can still go on the show.' I think I was embarrassed only in the fact that I was an athlete and I was supposed to be encompassing everything healthy and fit. I was supposed to be doing all the right things to be an athlete," she went on.
She revealed that the producers and even her father did not know about it. With that, people thought she was completely and perfectly healthy.
Witney Carson's Cancer Journey
In the same interview, Carson detailed how she discovered the disease.
The medical staff reportedly took an inch diameter around the mole on her foot and lymph nodes in her left hip. Unfortunately, it spread quickly that they had to remove the lymph nodes.
She also underwent a long, recovery period.
When she appeared on "DWTS," she had her foot wrapped with stitches in it. During the rehearsals, she went full force despite her status, but she ended up with ripped stitches.
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"The doctor has not cleared me for any active anything. I just decided to do it anyway because how could I not? It's my dream. So I go, I do the whole routine. I'm like, 'My foot feels so sweaty. I'm so sweaty. This is so weird,' and I looked down and my white tennis shoe is just covered in blood, just covered in blood," she detailed.
That explains why she had her left foot wrapped in gauze in her early "DWTS" videos.
Carson then revealed that both her parents were also diagnosed with it, but they also survived the dreaded disease.
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