Olivia Newton-John opens up about Kelly Preston’s death: “An incredibly difficult thing”
Olivia Newton-John has given a statement on the loss of the late Kelly Preston who passed away from breast cancer at 57.
The Grease star has remained open about her own battle with breast cancer, and told ET that Preston was a "beautiful person, inside and out, and was beautiful to look at."
Newton-John and Preston’s husband John Travolta, have been close friends for almost 29 years, and claimed the family are "coping as well as you can imagine."
"She had a gentle spirit and I just feel so, so much for John and the children. It's hard to put into words," Newton-John said.
"Loss is loss, and to lose your mother and your wife is an incredibly difficult thing, and it takes a long time. But ultimately it's a private journey and I respect that for them."
Newton-John was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992.
She only decided to go public with her battle after false reports and rumours.
"There was going to be an article released in one of the gossip papers that I was dying of cancer," the 72-year-old said.
"When I heard that, I decided that rather than frighten my family and my friends, it would be better to just come out with it."
"Being a cancer thriver of 28 years and having gone through surgery and chemotherapy and radiation I always had this dream that we could find kinder ways of treating cancer," she added.
Preston however had been battling her diagnosis for two years in silence, which shocked fans across the globe when they learnt of her death.
"It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer," Travolta wrote on Instagram on July 13.
"She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many. Kelly's love and life will always be remembered."
Preston is survived by Travolta and their children: daughter Ella, 20, and nine-year-old son Benjamin.