EastEnders star Samantha Womack announces she's cancer free five months after sharing diagnosis

Former EastEnders actor Samantha Womack has confirmed she is cancer free after first going public with her diagnosis five months ago.

Womack, who played Veronica 'Ronnie' Mitchell on the soap opera, has used social media to keep fans updated with her health journey after sharing in August that a random health check had led to doctors discovering a 'little shadow'.

She hadn't spotted any symptoms herself but received a diagnosis of breast cancer, explaining that the 'turnaround' was quite quick as she was given an ultrasound scan as a precaution.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, Womack described the first round of chemotherapy as being 'pretty hardcore', adding: "It was quite toxic – we were lucky because I got to recover in Spain, Ollie and Wallie were picking me up from the airport in Valencia."

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She also underwent surgery, which she said was 'quite difficult to recover from', saying: "Just because it's quite tender when you have lymph nodes removed, there's a few mobility issues at the beginning."

In the wake of the treatment, she has confirmed she is now cancer free and is 'thankful' for her life.

Womack explained: "Now I'm just having some treatment as I go back to work, as a prevention – it was crazy, I was doing The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – the producers there were amazing and gave me time off.

"We're feeling a lot better than we were."

Womack previously described herself as 'lucky' that the cancer was spotted when it was, telling This Morning hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield last month that doctors found it when 'it was less than two centimetres'.

Recalling the process, Womack explained: "I had a lumpectomy, which is just a piece of tissue removed and five lymph nodes.

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"The mad thing about cancer when you have it, is you understand there are so many different roads, different diagnoses, it is a terrifying world.

"It's terrifying at the beginning but if there was ever a time to have it, there are so many new treatments now that are changing the face of cancer, it's amazing."

Womack has received a wealth of support from fans in the wake of her diagnosis, so much so that she took to social media to share a video thanking everyone for their kind messages.

"I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has been sending me love after I shared my story about battling with breast cancer," she said on Instagram in October.