Actress hid cancer battle from Broadway co-stars while undergoing treatment for fallopian tube cancer

US actress and singer Sara Chase has disclosed new details of her secret fallopian tube cancer battle, revealing she experienced her first hot flush while on stage in front of 1400 people.

The star made the revelation in a moving essay for US Today, which comes months after she first revealed she had cancer.

Chase was diagnosed earlier this year while preparing for a starring role in a new Broadway musical production of The Great Gatsby.

Chase, 41, who played Cyndee Pokorny on the hit Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, wrote that she had wanted to be a Broadway star since she saw her first musical at the age of six.

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After college, she moved to New York City to pursue her dream but that same year, a family history of cancer led her to undergo testing for the BRCA1 gene, which was positive.

It meant she had a 50 per cent chance of developing breast cancer by the age of 70, She was also at higher risk of other cancers, such as ovarian cancer.

She said while she was "disappointed and sad," she continued to chase her dreams while adapting her lifestyle and undergoing regular screening.

She eventually made her Broadway debut at 29 in First Date before finding fame in The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Chase said it was during her run on the show that doctors first suggested removing her fallopian tubes, "but I always came up with excuses to put the surgery off."

Then last year she was asked to play Myrtle Wilson in a new musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby, which started its run off-Broadway.

Chase said the role was "every Broadway fantasy I had ever dreamed of" and included a show-stopping ballad.

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"But a month or so before rehearsals began, my doctors again recommended I go through with removing my fallopian tubes," she wrote.

"With Broadway rehearsals starting soon, and a gruelling show schedule ahead of me, I decided to just go for it.

"I had the procedure 10 days before rehearsals started. Now, I thought, I could put it out of my head."

Chase said she was at home running lines two weeks later, when her doctor rang.

"They had found cancer in one of my fallopian tubes. Thankfully, it was caught early, but the standard of care was an immediate full hysterectomy, oophorectomy, and six rounds of chemotherapy every three weeks," she wrote.

"I couldn't believe what he was telling me."

Chase wrote that one of her first questions was, "Can I still do Gatsby?"

"I knew I had three days off soon, so I arranged to have the surgery then, and if the pathology reports came back clean, the doctors could let me delay starting chemo until after opening night," she wrote.

After the call, Chase went straight to rehearsals where she didn't tell anyone, "Mostly because I was in denial. If I said it out loud, it would be true. That I have cancer."

For the next two weeks she lived "a secret double life" of early morning doctors appointments and blood tests before running to Broadway rehearsals, "stashing my hospital bracelets along the way."

"Two weeks after my diagnosis, I secretly got a full hysterectomy, oophorectomy and cervix removal," she wrote.

"Four days after that, I was on stage singing and dancing in full costumes and wigs like nothing had happened. (For the record, I do not recommend this.)

"I hid my scars with compression garments underneath my costumes, and I hid my pain too.

"As a secret cancer patient, I had to experience one of my first hot flashes alone on stage while 1400 people watched.

"I would never know if the sensations I was feeling were just nerves, a side effect of a new medication, or both.

"I never knew if I was crying on stage because that's what my character would do or because I was sad knowing I would lose my eyelashes and eyebrows soon."

Two weeks into the show's preview run, she received news the pathology was clean and she could perform on opening night.

"I was absolutely elated," she wrote.

"Still, as my cast and crew looked for opening night outfits, I secretly looked for wigs and scarves in case I needed them. As people were telling their friends and family about this new Broadway show they were in, I was telling friends and family about what to expect in the next coming months.

"My colleagues met with stylists; I met with oncologists.

When opening night finally arrived, she was alone in her dressing room when she "started to sob uncontrollably."

"I had been so focused on getting to this night, I don't think I had ever fully allowed myself to acknowledge all I had been going through," she wrote.

"I've heard the journey of cancer described as incredibly lonely, and I've found that to be true.

"No matter how many people I have in my corner (and I have so many wonderful people), no matter how many people applaud for me or greet me at the stage door, no matter how many incredible cast members and crew surround me, this was ultimately something I had to do by myself."

Chase finally told the cast the truth a week later. In the following months, she relied on understudies before taking a leave of absence to finish treatment.

She announced the news on Instagram in June, writing, "I will be taking a medical leave of absence from @bwaygatsby to finish chemo treatments until August 27. This was one of the hardest decisions I've had to make. I gave it my all for as long as I could, but now it's time to just focus on healing and recovery. I will miss the cast, the crew, the audience, and everyone at the Broadway Theatre tremendously. Hope to see you all soon."

Chase said she was "comforted by the fact that soon I'll be back on stage... even stronger."

During an interview with Broadway.com earlier this year, Chase said, "I keep saying I'm living my greatest dream and my nightmare at the same time."

She said she was telling her story to encourage others to listen to their doctors, and revealed she wished she'd had her fallopian tubes removed sooner.

"When my doctor told me the diagnosis, I said, 'I promise you if I get through this, I will speak about it.' I hope me telling my story will help other people not have to go through this.

"If you know what you can do to help yourself, you should do it."