Maria Mashkova, an actress who left Russia after the start of the war in Ukraine, has revealed she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, sharing the news in a video posted to Instagram.
Her departure came amid a broader exodus of Russian cultural figures. Since the invasion began in February 2022, dozens of prominent actors, directors and musicians have left Russia, with several openly criticizing the war.
Mashkova, the daughter of prominent Russian actor Vladimir Mashkov, said doctors found the cancer in 2012. She said her co-star on the television series "Zhit Dalshe" ("Life Goes On"), Irina Kupchenko, urged her to get her thyroid checked, which prompted Mashkova to notice what she called her own strange, enlarged neck. Kupchenko is a People's Artist of the USSR with a decades-long career in Soviet and Russian film and theater.
Examination and surgery in Moscow
Mashkova said she then underwent an examination in Moscow, where doctors scheduled her for surgery. She said the surgeon who carried out the operation was exceptionally skilled, managing to remove a very large thyroid gland through a very small incision. The gland, she said, turned out to contain cancer.
Surgical removal of the thyroid, a procedure known as a thyroidectomy, is a standard treatment for the disease.
Thyroid cancer, one of the more common cancers affecting the endocrine system, develops in the thyroid, a small gland in the neck that produces hormones controlling metabolism. Mashkova said the disease is treatable when caught at an early stage, and she urged her followers to look after their health and get themselves checked.
Daughter of a leading Russian actor
Vladimir Mashkov is a People's Artist of Russia, celebrated for his work in Russian film and theater and for leading Moscow's Oleg Tabakov Theatre. He is known internationally for playing the villain in Ghost Protocol, the fourth film in Hollywood's Mission: Impossible series, and for his role in the Oscar-nominated Russian drama "12." His daughter Maria built her own career as an actress in Russian film and television before moving abroad after Russia's invasion of Ukraine began. She shared her cancer diagnosis on Instagram, a platform owned by Meta, which has been designated an extremist organization and banned in Russia.
A birthday message home
Mashkova, who now lives in the United States, had earlier addressed her parents on her birthday. She promised she would return to her home country and thanked her family for giving her life.
