The actor, now 95, disclosed that he was diagnosed with malignant melanoma that had spread to his lungs and brain in 2023, just as his daughter Melanie Shatner Gretsch was nearing the end of treatment for metastatic breast cancer. Today, both have been declared cancer-free and are speaking publicly about the experience for the first time.
William Shatner Says Surviving Cancer Changed His Perspective on Life
For the Shatner family, the health crisis unfolded on two fronts. Melanie had already been undergoing chemotherapy after being diagnosed with HER2-positive stage 4 breast cancer when her father received devastating news of his own. Doctors told the “Star Trek” icon that his melanoma had advanced significantly. Recalling the moment, Shatner shared, “They said, ‘You got cancer. If you came in later, you would have been dead.’ See? That’s my life. I think the universe is taking care of me.”
Long before his own diagnosis, Shatner had become his daughter’s source of strength during one of her darkest moments. Melanie remembered calling him in the middle of the night while overwhelmed by treatment, convinced she was dying. Within minutes, he was at her home. She recalled that he embraced her and reassured her, telling her, “This is going to be a blip in your life. You’re going to get through this, and it’ll be a memory.”
As Melanie completed chemotherapy, radiation and a double mastectomy, Shatner underwent surgery followed by two years of immunotherapy after cancer was found in his lungs and brain. By late 2024, both had no evidence of disease. Looking back on what the ordeal left him with, the actor said, “I’m thinking of the miracle of a hummingbird, and of my dog taking a ball, and my children. I’m aware of the magic of it all.”
The father and daughter are now channeling that experience into No Time but Now, a podcast launching July 29 that will feature conversations with physicians, cancer survivors and wellness advocates. Melanie stated, “[Overcoming cancer] changed my life. I’m not so afraid anymore, and there’s so much freedom and joy.”
Shatner, meanwhile, continues to focus on new creative projects and time with his growing family, saying that the legacy he hopes to leave behind is simply “doing good deeds and helping other people.”