Applegate: Cancer motivated me (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Applegate: Cancer motivated me

1:31pm Friday 30th July 2010 in Entertainment News © Press Association 2011

Christina Applegate has said beating breast cancer motivated her to "make things happen".

The actress underwent a double masectomy in July 2008 after being diagnosed with the disease.

"I think the urgency to have a good life is definitely a stronger element in my life now than it was before. I think I meandered, waiting for something to happen. Now I really try to make things happen right now," she explained.

The actress, who voices the feline spy Katherine in new movie Cats & Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore, recently announced she was expecting a baby with fiance Martyn Lenoble.

Christina said humour helped her through the tough times.

"I always found (something) funny in everything I was going through, there are funny things - hospitals are funny!" she laughed.

And since recovering, the actress admitted she was learning to say "no" a lot more.

"I allow myself to get angry now, which I don't think I ever did, to feel whatever it is you're feeling and speak your mind," she said. "I say 'no' so much now and it's fantastic. I didn't say 'no' before, I said 'yes' to everything."

But the pregnant actress insisted she was saying 'yes' to "living life, resting and doing voice-overs for kids movies - things that will bring lots of joy to the littler folk".