Park So Dam opens up about her recovery journey following cancer diagnosis
South Korean actress Park So Dam reflected on how she's more focused on taking care of herself nearly five years after she was diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer.
In her recent interview, the Special Delivery star opened up about how her life changed after battling thyroid cancer. She shared that during her recent hiatus, she did things she had never done before, including traveling alone.
She shared that she traveled alone to Europe for 34 days, drove to see the Northern Lights, and took spontaneous trips.
"I think I was in pain. Thankfully, while I was doing this job, I was so busy. I think I missed myself for a while. When I look at myself now, I think I'm really okay now," she shared, as roughly translated by YouTube.
"It hasn't been easy for me to come out and talk about myself. I keep crying," she added. "Until I can tell my story well, I have to take care of myself a lot."
In a separate interview, she shared that during the time she was promoting Phantom, which would become her last movie before her hiatus, she often told people that she was really fine. Looking back now, however, she realized that she wasn’t.
She also shared that she had to turn down a project because it involved filming outdoor action scenes during winter, which she worried would be too hard on her health.
“I was so upset that my condition forced me to make that choice, and I kept wondering whether I should have just taken responsibility and pushed through,” the Parasite star said, per Korea JoongAng Daily.
“But I was just frustrated with myself for not being in good enough shape,” the Korean actress added. “That made me realize that if I want to be able to seize an opportunity when it comes, I have to take good care of my health.”
So Dam was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2021 and underwent treatment that same year. After taking time to recover, she returned to acting and starred in Phantom and the series Death’s Game, both released in 2023. She then took a two-year hiatus to focus on her health and recovery. She is now returning to the big screen with the dark comedy The Journey to Gyeongju.
Other than the award-winning film Parasite, she's also played roles in TV dramas including Cinderella and the Four Knights, Record of Youth, Ode to the Goose, and Special Delivery,
