Dancing With The Stars: How Competing Saved Jennifer Grey's Life

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When Dancing With the Stars season 11 first premiered back in the fall of 2010, Jennifer Grey was announced as one of the celebrities competing, and it's time to talk about why the show was so important for her. After she was cast, it was revealed that Derek Hough would be her partner. The pair went on to win the season, although the experience was very tough for Jennifer, as she was suffering from an injury throughout her DWTS stint. Years later, the Dirty Dancing star revealed that competing on the show literally saved her life. Her story is interesting and very important, as well as educational.

When promoting her memoir, Out Of The Corner, Jennifer revealed that 20 years prior to competing on Dancing With the Stars, she was involved in a serious car crash with her ex-boyfriend, Matthew Broderick. However, she didn't realize how severe her injury was until she was competing in the reality dancing competition. While dealing with her injury while competing on the show, the actress discovered that she had cancer.

Related: Why Kaitlyn Bristowe Should Replace Tyra As Dancing With the Stars Host

According to USA Today, Jennifer stated, "From [DWTS] experience, I found I had cancer and that I had had it for four and a half years, but the doctor who looked at my spine said not only should you not be in a car, you’re lucky you’re not paralyzed, your head is hanging off your spine and this is why you’ve been in pain for 20 years.” She credited the show as the reason why her injury and cancer diagnosis were brought to her attention. She might not have found out if she didn't compete in the series.

Also, Jennifer had previously shared that she only did DWTS because of her daughter, and because of Marlee Matlin. The former DWTS