Penny Marshall is now exploring alternative medical treatments in a desperate attempt to beat her deadly cancer, The ENQUIRER has learned exclusively.
"At this point, Penny is open to anything," a family friend revealed. "She can feel herself getting worse and, according to her doctors, her condition is terminal, and she is not expected to live another year.
"Penny is still going for her radiation and chemo treatments, but now she is trying this new therapy."
Her treatment plan, which includes special dietary supplements, acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments and analysis of alkaline, oxygen and pHbalances, is being provided by the Qianli Wellness organization, part of the Therapeutic Body Center in Grover Beach, Calif.
The goal of the treatment is to work with a therapist and get the patient’s body back to its "original state" so it can begin to heal, the friend said.
Penny’s daughter Tracy, who is not ill, has also been undergoing the therapy at the center, as a show of support for the Laverne & Shirley star.
"Penny’s cancer has now spread to other parts of her body, and while no one is promising this treatment can cure her cancer, the hope is that it might help her body cure itself," said the friend.
While Penny’s rep continues to deny that she is seriously ill, a close family source told The ENQUIRER that the beloved producer/director believes she’s losing her fight with cancer, which was discovered in her liver in the fall, and has continued to spread.
"She’s lost some of her hair, and her stomach is protruding from the medications," the family insider divulged.
One immediate benefit of the new treatment is that Penny, 66 – who smoked up to four packs a day before her diagnosis – has finally quit smoking.
