In March I originally found out that actress Valerie Harper had terminal cancer and that she had about 3 months to live.  Here it is close to September and Valerie is still alive.

Valerie Harper's rare, terminal brain cancer may be close to remission, the actress' neuro-oncologist revealed exclusively on NBC's Today show Thursday morning.

A recent MRI showed that the Rhoda actress' leptomeningeal carcinomatosis is "pretty close to remission," Dr. Jeremy Rudnick told Meredith Vieira in a sneak peek at an upcoming special about Harper's battle.

That development "defies the odds," Rudnick said, but he cautioned that her condition could change at any time.

"They develop resistance to the therapy," Rudnick said of patients undergoing treatments similar to Harper's. "And it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when."

So what this news really means is that Harper has more time, during which, hopefully, a more effective treatment will come along.

Harper revealed her terminal brain cancer diagnosis in March. Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis is a disease in which cancer cells spread into the membrane surrounding the brain.

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Actress Valerie Harper has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and she says that doctors have given her only about three months to live.

Harper says she will try to face her last days with humor and courage.  'I don't think of dying,' she said. 'I think of being here now.'

This is her second bout with cancer.  In 2009, she battled lung cancer despite the fact that she was a non-smoker.

In recent years, she has appeared on The Simpsons, Desperate Housewives and Til Death.  She also wrote her recent memoir, I, Rhoda.

She won 3 Emmy awards as best supporting actress for her work on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

That work earned her a starring role on her own show, Rhoda, which earned her an Emmy in 1975. After the show ended in 1978, she appeared in several shows and movies, until returning to television for Valerie in 1986.

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