The Office actress Lucy Davis reveals incurable breast cancer diagnosis

Lucy Davis, the actor best known for playing Dawn Tinsley in the original BBC version of The Office, has announced she is living with incurable stage-four breast cancer.

The 53-year-old, daughter of comedian Jasper Carrott, shared the news in an Instagram post on Tuesday. She wrote that she received the diagnosis around 18 months ago after discovering a "really tiny" hard spot in her breast.

Cancer has spread to bones

The Wonder Woman actor said the disease has since metastasized to her bones, including her spine, right hip and ribs. Davis posted a video showing her smiling and ringing the bell in hospital to mark the end of a treatment cycle, but added in the caption that "the cancer is incurable, and too late for chemo."

"As of now, I'm trying to live out whatever might be left of my life in as fun a way as I possibly can," Davis wrote. "I always like to find the teachable moments in anything negative that happens. And cancer has not disappointed in that regard; there's a lot I have learned from it, and I'm grateful for that."

Humour and perspective

The Birmingham native said pain has been the hardest challenge and that she sometimes uses a wheelchair. "The thing that has been most vital to me is humour," she wrote. "I asked my friends and family to make fun of me as much as possible (which they're really good at), and most importantly of all to not treat me like a sick person. There's nothing that will make you feel more unwell than being treated as if you're unwell."

Davis added she is "not scared of whatever comes next" and feels at peace. "For me, leaving my physical body just means going home. Any and all grieving is for my family; it's far harder for them than for me."

Beyond The Office and the film Shaun of the Dead, Davis reached a new generation through Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. She also appeared in the Disney Channel series The Villains of Valley View and said she intends to continue acting.

"I'm still going to keep up all my work for animal rights. It's so important to me," she wrote. "And I still would like to keep working. I'm perfectly able to do so, and acting is one of the biggest joys in my life."