Samantha Womack has said she would’ve delayed her own cancer treatment in solidarity with striking NHS staff who “shouldn’t be eating from food banks”. The former EastEnders actor, 50, announced she had been diagnosed with “brutal” breast cancer in August last year – shortly after Dame Olivia Newton-John died from the disease. Last December, NHS doctors and nurses went on a nationwide strike demanding better pay amid a cost-of-living crisis and rising inflation. Describing herself as a “huge advocate” of England’s national health service, she called it “one of the best gifts we have” in an interview with Press Association. She added: “But when you’ve got the people who are working as hard as they are doing the hours they are, not being supported, even if it would have delayed my own personal treatment, “I would have been out there fighting with them, because I’m absolutely desperate for them to be paid properly and appropriately for what they do,” she continued. “They certainly shouldn’t be eating from food banks.” She also told the agency Newton-John’s death made Womack want to share her own diagnosis, “because I thought everyone knows someone that’s got cancer”. “It was very poignant for me when I got my diagnosis that she had lost her battle and they happened within the same timeframe,” she explained. Womack, who played Ronnie Mitchell on the hit BBC soap until 2017, told fans in January 2023 that she had overcome breast cancer. The British actor is now lending her support to a campaign enabling greater access to a new AI breast cancer diagnostic tool called Digistain. The UK’s first breast cancer risk profiling solution, Digistain helps patients better understand their cancer and the specific treatment that will most benefit them. Womack said she didn’t know about Digistain when her cancer was diagnosed, and that she was “anxious not to have chemotherapy” if she didn’t require the “brutal treatment”. “I knew that there was a test called the Oncotype test, which is very similar....(but) it’s incredibly expensive so it’s just not available to most people,” she added. Womack said the test gives a ratio of how beneficial chemotherapy would be and she was “on the fence” so had two rounds before making the decision to stop. Last October, Womack gave fans a health update while receiving the treatment, explaining that she had gotten her appetite back but was struggling with migraines. Elsewhere in the interview on Friday (12 May), Womack reflected on life after being given the all-clear and how it has changed her perspective. “It’s apparent in every little thing that you think,” she continued. “It’s a bit like learning to think and speak in a different language and it’s quite exhausting, because you’re not quite the same person that you were so everything is just slightly shaded in a different colour.” Read More Rainy bike rides and jellybean bribes: The secrets of royal coronation photographer Hugo Burnand Taylor Swift fans react to new photo ‘confirming’ Matty Healy romance: ‘I’m going to cry’ The Bear star Jeremy Allen White’s wife Addison Timlin reportedly files for divorce Meghan is ‘cuckoo’ in royal nest and her ‘woke hang-ups’ will destroy marriage, says Labour grandee Robert De Niro reveals name of newborn daughter as he shares first photo of seventh child

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YouTuber MrBeast is being counter-sued for $100 million by Virtual Dining Concepts, the company behind Beast Burger restaurants. MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, shared in June that he was going to be “moving on” from his Beast Burger restaurants in order to concentrate more on his snack business with his chocolate bar brand Feastables. Just over two years ago Donaldson partnered with Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC) to launch over 2,000 ‘ghost kitchens’ to make Beast Burger available across the United States. VDC are suing Donaldson for failing to honour his contractual obligations, as well as intentional tortious interference. The lawsuit was filed on Monday morning in the Supreme Court of the State of New York for the County of New York. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The suit, obtained by Variety, is a response to Donaldson suing VDC and its parent company last month, wanting to terminate the deal for his restaurant chain, alleging the burgers it served were called “disgusting,” “revolting” and “inedible” which damaged his reputation. Last week, VDC hit back at the suit claiming it was “riddled with false statements and inaccuracies”, as well as calling it “meritless” and “ill-advised”. “This case is about a social media celebrity who believes his fame means that his word does not matter, that the facts do not matter, and that he can renege and breach his contractual obligations without consequence,” the suit states. “He is mistaken.” The counter-suit claims that Donaldson had breached the parties’ agreements and interfered with business dealings. As a result, it has damaged the reputation of MrBeast Burger and VDC, turned away customers and ruined relationships with suppliers and vendors. The lawsuit also contains examples of deleted tweets from the YouTube star’s account where he writes that he wished to close the burger business, writing: “the company I partnered with won’t let me stop even though it’s terrible for my brand.” VDC was co-founded by Robert Earl, who is the founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood. The company has backed celebrity brands including those from Mariah Carey and Mario Lopez. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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