Pamela Anderson has opened up about her hepatitis C diagnosis, revealing that it was “a death sentence at the time.”
Anderson, 59, reflected on her harrowing medical diagnosis while accepting the Award of Courage at the amfAR Gala Venezia 2026 on Sunday. The actress said that when she received the medical diagnosis in the late ‘90s, there was no cure.
The Baywatch star was diagnosed after sharing tattoo needles with her ex-husband, rocker Tommy Lee, with whom she has two children.
“It was a death sentence,” Anderson began in her poignant speech, according to Variety. “That’s what my doctor told me—that I probably had around 10 years to live. I’m sure that colored and corrupted my decisions. It was not fear of death, but fear of what might happen to my young children. It turned my life inside out.”
Anderson was receiving the award from amFar, an organization dedicated to scientific discovery and the fight to end AIDS, along with contributing research to other diseases, including hepatitis C.
The Naked Gun actress was declared “free” of hepatitis C by 2015. In her acceptance speech, she said it “took everything I had in my bank.”
“My experience of shame and guilt was also an unconscious journey. It stays with me; it haunts me,” Anderson continued. “And just like the sexual abuse that I endured as a child, it felt like it was carved into my forehead: Damaged goods. And I presented myself as such.”
Anderson said that although she is now clear of the condition, she has never “fully recovered.” The actress said she has “finally come to terms” with the disease and that this acceptance fueled her career renaissance.
“My truth has come through my work, finding ways to express myself through the arts,” she said. “It gave me the ammunition I needed, a fertile life to use and play in. I’m not a victim, I’m a victor. I am strong and capable, more now than I could ever dream of … I’m not the damsel in distress, no matter how easy that role is to play.”
Anderson starred in 2024’s The Last Showgirl, for which she received nominations for the Golden Globe Award and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress.
The animal activist and ’90s sex symbol later starred in The Naked Gun with Liam Neeson.
She has a slew of other projects coming up, including Place to Be, Love Is Not the Answer, and Somedays. Her Place to Be co-star, Taika Waititi, presented her with the amFar award.
