'Tiny Pretty Things' star Barton Cowperthwaite shares brain tumor diagnosis
The actor said he and his family are also getting "second opinions."
Barton Cowperthwaite, a star from Netflix's ballet drama series, "Tiny Pretty Things," said he has been diagnosed with a brain tumor.
The 31-year-old actor took to Instagram Friday, revealing his health update in a candid post, featuring photos of himself alongside what appeared to be his CT scans.
"So…. Yesterday I was diagnosed with at least a stage 2 Glioma," he began his lengthy note in the caption. "It is a fairly decent sized brain tumor. The tumor's cells originate in the brain, so it's not spread from a cancer anywhere else in the body."
Explaining the standard procedure for the diagnosis, he continued, "The only course of treatment for something like this is brain surgery."
"Docs so far have been confident that they'll be able to remove most of the tumor, and that after a successful operation, and some rehab, I will be operating like my (amazing, talented, brilliant, hilarious) self," Cowperthwaite shared. "That being said it seems like scans and check ups will be apart of my life for its lengthy remainder."
While he is considering the surgery, the actor said he and his family are also "taking several days to get second opinions."
"Planning to go into surgery middle or end of next week," he added. "I'll do my best to be open about the journey on here. I am planning on fully bouncing back to be better than my former glory! Please feel free to reach out and I'll do my best to stay connected with as many people as I can. All my love 💙."
Gliomas are the most common type of malignant primary brain tumor in adults, according to the National Cancer Institute. The tumors "are graded from 1 to 4, with the higher numbers indicating a worse prognosis" and "tend to grow slowly at first, and surgery is often the initial treatment," the NCI said.
Fellow co-stars from "Tiny Pretty Things," actors Michael Hsu Rosen and Brennan Clost, expressed their support in the comment section of the post.
"I love you so much Barton," Rosen wrote, while Clost commented, "Oh Barty, I'm so sorry to hear this. Sending you so much love ❤️❤️❤️ you've got this!!!"
In addition to starring in the Netflix series in which he played the role of Oren Lennox, Cowperthwaite appeared on TV shows such as "Center Stage: On Pointe" in 2016 and the "Fosse/Verdon" mini-series in 2019 as well as the movie "Imposters" in 2022.
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