Christina Applegate has been diagnosed with an early stage of breast cancer, according to a statement put out by her representative. It sounds like it was caught early and that she should be fine after treatment. The 36 year-old actress has a family history of breast cancer. Her mother is a breast cancer survivor and underwent treatment and a mastectomy when Christina was a young girl. Christina is active with the Susan G Komen breast cancer foundation – my mother met her during a walk for the charity a few years ago – and it is likely that she goes for regular mammograms and checkups:

Christina Applegate has been diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer her rep confirmed Saturday.

“Benefitting from early detection through a doctor ordered MRI, the cancer is not life threatening,” the Emmy nominated Samantha Who? star’s rep said in a statement. “Christina is following the recommended treatment of her doctors and will have a full recovery.”

Applegate’s mother is a breast cancer survivor.

“The first time she was diagnosed I was a very young girl – probably 7. I’m not sure it really fully hit me at the time, but she had to undergo surgery and have a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery,” Applegate, 36, told USA Today in 2003.

“It was devastating for my mother to lose one of her breasts and have to go through all that,” Applegate said. “It is a very personal cancer for the women it affects. This is about women’s womanhood. It’s one of the aspects of our femininity.”

Breast cancer is currently the most common cancer in women and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the 15-54 age group.

[From US Weekly]

Actress Cynthia Nixon recently disclosed that she had breast cancer in 2006 and that it was detected early and she is now cancer free. Nixon’s mother is a two time breast cancer survivor and helped her realize the importance of early detection.

While looking for photos for this story I found some exclusives at Bauer Griffin which were taken May 13 and show Christina at an “outpatient cancer clinic” at Cedars Sinai, where they say she stayed for two hours. It’s possible that she chose to wait to announce her cancer, like Cynthia Nixon, until after treatment was successful.

In early July, Applegate lost her ex boyfriend of over two years. 26-year-old Lee Grivas was found dead in his apartment of an apparent heroin overdose on July 1. Applegate issued a statement at the time saying that she was “profoundly saddened” by his death. She is now thought to be dating a bass player who hails from Holland.

Applegate has gone through a lot this year, and our thoughts are with her for a quick recovery.

Christina Applegate is shown in the header on May 13 outside Cedars Sinai. Credit: JRI/JF2/bauergriffinonline.com. She is shown below at the “Over Her Dead Body” Los Angeles Premiere on 1/29/08. Credit: Albert L. Ortega / PR Photos