The Mrs Brown’s Boys star received her diagnosis last year, but has only now chosen to speak publicly about her ordeal
15:12, 23 Jan 2026Updated 17:13, 23 Jan 2026
Eilish O’Carroll on the Oliver Callan Show(Image: RTÉ Radio 1)
Eilish O’Carroll has courageously shared details of her breast cancer battle for the first time.
The Mrs Brown’s Boys star received her diagnosis last year, but has only now chosen to speak publicly about her ordeal. Last summer, her brother Brendan confirmed she was receiving treatment, but kept the specifics private.
Now, Eilish has revealed what the past 12 months have entailed and says she’s looking ahead with optimism. She explained: “This time last year I’d been diagnosed with breast cancer. I already had the mastectomy this time last year,” reports RSVP Live.
“So, I’ve been going through what most people go through when you have cancer – the treatment, the chemo, the radiotherapy, the medication. I’m still on medication obviously, and I’m still waiting on other various tests just to see where it’s at.
“I’m very positive, I’ve been so lucky, I’ve an amazing family, an amazing partner and amazing friends. I wouldn’t have been able to cope without them to be honest.”
Eilish describes feeling shocked upon receiving the diagnosis but now hopes sharing her story will support others facing similar circumstances. “[Her partner] Marian was with me. And when we came out, she said, ‘What would you like to do?’ and I said, ‘I’d like to go and have breakfast’,” she told Oliver Callan on RTÉ Radio 1.
“I went into complete denial. I was obviously very fearful, but it took me a while to process the information and accept it. It’s a great opportunity now to talk about it. People need to know there are happy endings to stories of people with cancer.”
Eilish was admitted to hospital with flu over Christmas 2024, completely unaware she had cancer. She explained: “I went in with the flu and I had no idea I had breast cancer. They did a chest X-ray and discovered I had an enlarged lymph node and also a possible small tumour, so I had the biopsy.
“I was dead lucky that I got the flu because I had no symptoms, absolutely none. I think that’s why I was in so much shock.” The severity of her diagnosis came as a devastating blow. “The surgeon said it was cancer, and it was quite aggressive – 28 lymph nodes were affected. That didn’t happen overnight.”
Despite beginning treatment, Eilish remarkably managed to continue filming a new series of Mrs. Brown’s Boys and embark on tour. “I had a mastectomy first. Four weeks after that I started chemo, and then in May I went over to the UK for eight weeks to do the mini series,” she said.
“The BBC were marvellous with me, they couldn’t do enough for me. I had the green room to myself and could take a rest whenever I wanted.”
She detailed her gruelling schedule: “I travelled over there every Sunday. I’d fly back on Friday and go straight in for chemo in Dublin, then two days of being completely wiped, then I was back on a plane.
“I did it, and I couldn’t believe it. It was a great distraction and motivation.” Eilish portrays Winnie McGoogan, the loyal companion to matriarch Agnes Brown in the beloved sitcom, and credits her character with helping her navigate her treatment journey.
“Winnie is a character I’ve been playing for 25 years now, she is a separate part of my identity,” the actress revealed. “You’ll think I’m mad now, but Winnie and I have conversations and she really got me through it.
“Winnie doesn’t take herself too seriously. There is always a rainbow after the rain. When I was feeling really down, and I had to go on set, she just carried me. She was an amazing support for me, which I know sounds daft, but she really was.”
The actress had to inform her colleagues about her diagnosis when her hair began falling out, prompting her to opt for a shorter style. She explained: “You can’t go around with a bald head and not tell anyone, can you?”.
“The first week I went over for the mini series I started losing the hair, so I got it cut short. It was hard, but people said, ‘It actually suits you, you have a lovely shaped head’.
“And I do, I do have a lovely shaped head! It only started to grow back just before Christmas.” Eilish remains optimistic about what lies ahead.
“The prospects are very good. They’ve thrown everything at it,” she said. “I’ll have a PET scan in March and various other scans so hopefully, but I’m very positive. If they have to do other stuff, they have to do it, but I’m really positive about it.”
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