Melissa Gilbert joined the fight against pancreatic cancer, which killed her Little House on the Prairie costar, Michael Landon.
On Tuesday, Dec. 23, Gilbert, 61, took to Instagram with a joint post with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.
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The update began with a quote from the former child actress who played Laura Ingalls Wilder in the beloved historical drama series. Little House on the Prairie aired for nine seasons from 1974 to 1983.
"Obviously, this is not a fight I can take on myself and that is why I am so grateful for PanCAN," the quote began. "I can take my anger and use it to support this extraordinary organization. PanCAN is truly a one-of-a-kind resource for people whose lives are impacted by pancreatic cancer."
To conclude the post, PanCAN added, "Join us in thanking our PanCAN Ambassadors for an amazing year! ? Comment IMPACT to read the 2025 PanCAN Impact Report, Spotlight on Progress. ✨."
Landon—who played Gilbert's onscreen father, Charles "Pa" Ingalls, in Little House on the Prairie—died at 54 in 1991, three months after publicly announcing his pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
View this post on InstagramRelated: Little House on the Prairie Fans Mourn Devastating Loss
Of learning Landon's diagnosis, she told Fox News Digital in 2024, "His daughter Leslie Landon Matthews, someone who has been a very dear friend of mine for 50 years, called me because she wanted me to know [his diagnosis] before it hit the press. Her dad was going to do a press conference, and she didn’t want me to just hear about it. So she called and told me . . . I was gutted."
She added, "My first thought was, ‘This is horrible—I’m going to lose a mentor and father figure.' I’d already lost my own father to suicide when I was 11. I was staring down the barrel of losing another important male influence in my life. It really shook me."
Additionally, Gilbert's friend, Patrick Swayze, died from pancreatic cancer at 57 in 2009.
Of Landon and Swayze, Gilbert pointed out, "They both said, ‘I’m going to beat it.' And it’s really important for people to understand that supporting one cancer research benefits all the others. As research develops, as treatments and cures are developed, it can eventually be applied to other cancers. ...Pancreatic cancer is a horrible thing to experience, but we can detect things earlier as research grows."
The When Calls the Heart actress concluded, "Make no mistake, all cancers are cruel. But the survival rate for pancreatic cancer is abysmal. And the reason for that is that it’s so hard to detect, and it goes fast. This cancer is particularly bad because it is so sneaky. ...But I’m still going to fight."
Next: Melissa Gilbert Honors Late Little House on the Prairie Costar: "My Childhood BFF"
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