Ryan Paevey has been open about his mom’s battle with cancer, always updating fans regarding the heartbreaking experience. The General Hospital alum took to social media to share his concerns and struggles as his mother’s caregiver during her treatment. While he has taken a break to be with his mother, Paevey still feels the need to do more but confesses that the family is doing everything they can.
After captivating audiences with his depiction of Nathan West on 280 episodes of General Hospital, Ryan Paevey built a massive fanbase that followed him to his next big project on Hallmark. Paevey was in the 2023 Hallmark television film Fourth Down & Love as Mike Hanson. However, he has taken an indefinite break from acting and his social media presence is also affected. Though the decision goes beyond his mother’s health, spending time with her is more important than anything.
Ryan Paevey’s Mom Has Stage 4 Lung Cancer
Earlier in June 2024, Paevey confirmed to Heavy that his mom had been diagnosed with lung cancer. The Unleashing Mr. Darcy star went all out to set the record straight following several speculations about his absence from the public space. Aside from taking a break from acting, Paevey has deleted most of his social media accounts, stirring rumors.
A couple of months later, Paevey emerged to update his fans on what he has been up to. Taking to Instagram Stories, Paevey answered questions from online fans and some of them were about his mom’s health. The actor confirmed once again that his mother has cancer and the family is doing everything possible to make the journey easy. His statement also suggests financial woes due to the cost of treatment.
“Yeah, my mom’s stage 4. Lung cancer. It is [swears], but we’re doing what we can do. We’re fighting it. She’s just on Medicare. It’s not like, you know, I don’t have some secret rich guy Hollywood insurance that I can give my mother. We’re in the dregs,” he said.
Ryan Paevey Paused His Acting Career To Become His Mother’s Caregiver
Among other reasons, the General Hospital alum took a break from acting to care for his mom. Paevey moved from Los Angeles to San Diego to spend more time with his mother. During his interactions with fans on Instagram, he shared personal details about the journey so far. “I take her for walks, we annoy the [swears] out of each other.”
His duties as a caregiver also involve encouraging his mother to eat the right things and doing a lot of cancer research to find ways to make her better. Despite moving from Los Angeles to San Diego, Paevy wishes he could do more. Nevertheless, regardless of the challenges of being his mom’s caregiver, the actor is happy to spend more time with his family.
During this conversation with fans, Ryan Paevey also revealed that he saw what was coming long before his mother got sick. According to the actor, he prepared for this phase a few years ago. “My mom’s been a smoker my whole life. I knew something was coming. So, yeah, I mean my journey down here to San Diego, [when] I left Los Angeles, began a few years ago.”
The Real Reason Ryan Paevey Stepped Away From Hollywood
Granted, he needed the time off to be closer home for his mother but several other issues contributed to Ryan Paevey’s decision to step away from Hollywood. Back in April 2024, the American actor took to social media to reveal that he may be taking the rest of 2024 off from filming. Later in June, he deleted his Facebook and Twitter accounts, retaining Instagram as the only platform for his social media presence.
Consequently, rumors and speculations started flying around to understand the actor’s decision and he didn’t like it. As such, Ryan Paevey released a statement through Heavy.com, explaining his decision to withdraw from Hollywood and social media. He cited his mental health, his mother’s cancer diagnosis, and social media scams among his reasons. Paevey also shared the statement on Instagram. Part of his statement reads:
“I am taking a step back from acting, something I’ve felt I’ve needed to do for a while now, and a decision proven to be absolutely necessary in the past few weeks. The industry hasn’t felt like the place for me in quite some time now, and my mental health has suffered from it. It’s taken me to a bit of a dark place, made me into a version of myself I don’t like very much. I’ve had bank accounts hacked, money embezzled, investments stolen….things that, while difficult, can be recovered from. But after all that, my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. I left Los Angeles to be closer to her, and feel the need to devote more of my time, energy, and resources closer to home.” Learn 10 facts about Ryan Paevey.
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