The Television Icon’s Husband Also Joins the Show and Reveals Exclusively

That He Initially Hid the Diagnosis from Harper Because of the Short Prognosis

(Hollywood, CA – March 7, 2013) In a daytime television exclusive, Valerie Harper joins the Emmy Award-winning syndicated daytime talk show, The Doctors, on Monday, March 11 (check local listings) for her first on-camera interview following her announcement of terminal brain cancer. Harper, whose doctors have given her as little as three months to live, opens up to the co-hosts of The Doctors about how she and her family have managed since receiving the devastating news, and how she plans to live out her remaining days.

Harper, an adored television icon perhaps best known for her role on the critically acclaimed “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and its spin-off, “Rhoda,” learned of the fatal diagnosis in January when doctors discovered she suffers from leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, a rare and incurable form of brain cancer. Co-host and ER physician, Dr. Travis Stork, takes viewers through an in-depth look at the probable course of this disease and explains why it is difficult to treat.

Harper is joined on stage by her husband, Tony Cacciotti, who exclusively reveals on The Doctors that he initially hid the diagnosis from his wife after first hearing it from her doctors.  Harper is also joined by “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” cast mates Cloris Leachman and Ed Asner.

“I have to tell you I am blown away by her resilience and her resolve in the face of such a dire, dire diagnosis,” said Dr. Travis Stork.  

When asked where she was when the diagnosis came, Harper shared, “I didn’t get it because my husband hid it. Poor baby; he was so bereft. [The doctors] said there is nothing we can do for her and [she has] three to six months; maybe.”

The Doctors also welcomes the team of Cedars Sinai physicians treating Valerie Harper’s brain cancer, neuro-oncologist Dr. Jeremy Rudnick and oncologist Dr. Ronald Natale, to shed light on her specific treatment.

Tune in on Monday, March 11 (check local listings) and visit TheDoctorsTV.com for more information.

Above photo: Dr. Andrew Ordon, Dr. Lisa Masterson, Valerie Harper and Dr. Travis Stork

Credit photo to CBS Television Distribution / Stage 29 Productions

About The Doctors

The Doctors is an Emmy® Award-winning daily, nationally syndicated series airing in 200 markets. Featuring Dr. Travis Stork, M.D., Dr. Andrew P. Ordon, M.D., F.A.C.S., Dr. James M. Sears, M.D., and Dr. Lisa Masterson, M.D, The Doctorsoffers viewers a reliable source of fascinating medical and health advice. Taped in front of an audience in Hollywood, The Doctors is produced by Stage 29 Productions and distributed by CBS Television Distribution. Jay McGraw, Carla Pennington, Andrew Scher, and Dr. Phil McGraw are executive producers. CBS Television Distribution is the preeminent company in worldwide television syndication. For additional information on The Doctors, now in its fifth season, please visit thedoctorstv.com.