Ananda Lewis has been suffering from Stage 3 breast cancer. The former BET “Teen Summit” host revealed the news in an Instagram video on Thursday (Oct. 1), which marked the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

“I am sharing this with you today because it is the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness month and I have been fighting to get cancer out of my body for almost two years,” Lewis said.

In her video, the former MTV veejay explained that she had been hesitant to get mammogram tests, which can be used to detect early signs of breast cancer, after seeing her mother get them. Lewis’ mother, she said, got mammograms regularly for 30 years, only to finally be diagnosed with the cancer.

“I said, ‘Huh. Radiation exposure for years [causes] breast cancer. Yeah. I’m gonna pass. Thanks anyway,” Lewis recalled.

However, Lewis now says that avoiding mammogram tests was a “mistake.” While she still stands by research that shows radiation exposure — which occurs during mammograms — can cause cancer, she now realizes that the tests could have caught her cancer early on.

“The reason why I’m here telling you my business is because I would have had three or four mammograms by the time they caught [the cancer],” she explained. “Instead, I’ve had to have two PET [Positron Emission Tomography] scans so far. Guess how many mammograms worth of radiation a PET scan is. Anyone? 30. 30! So 60 mammograms! You do the math.”

Lewis, who is now 47, explained that if she had begun getting mammogram tests at the recommend age of 40, the cancer could have been identified at a “more manageable” stage.

“Instead, what I’m dealing with is Stage 3 breast cancer that is in my lymphs,” she said.

After sharing her experience, Lewis made an emotional plea for her friends and followers to get mammograms.

“I need you to get your mammograms,” she said. “… Early detection, especially for breast cancer, changes your outcome. It can save your life.”

Thankfully, Lewis said she’s been able to stop the cancer from spreading throughout her body with natural and homeopathic remedies.

“That’s good news,” she said, “but it’s not gone and I still have a lot of work to do.”

Tearfully, she added, “I have a 9-year-old I need to be here for. I have no intention of leaving him. I don’t want to leave my kids, my friends, my family. Hell I don’t want to leave myself; I like being here!”

“This is tough for me to share, but if just ONE woman decides to get her mammogram after watching this, what I’m going through will be worth it,” she captioned the clip.

We at REVOLT send our condolences and prayers for recovery to Lewis at this time. See her video announcement below.