Shannen Doherty ‘Divorce Last Thing’ She Wanted

Nine years into her battle with breast cancer, Shannen Doherty is now struggling through a divorce from her husband of 11 years, Kurt Iswarienko. Doherty, 53, and Iswarienko, 50, married in Malibu, California in October 2011. The couple separated in January 2024 and Doherty filed for divorce three months later. With her husband by her side throughout her cancer battle, Doherty’s rep, Leslie Sloane told PEOPLE “Divorce is the last thing Shannen wanted.”

Shannen’s Battle With Cancer

Shannen Doherty was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. Doherty had a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery as well as chemotherapy and radiation. She went into remission in 2017, but unfortunately the cancer returned in 2019 and had progressed to stage 4. On a recent episode of her podcast Let’s Be Clear With Shannen Doherty, Shannen stated that “My priority at the moment is my mom. I know it’s going to be hard on her if I pass away before her.” Recently Doherty, along with her mother Rosa Doherty, travelled to Tennessee to go through some items in storage. Shannen has even sold some of her possessions to lessen the financial pressure on her mom in case she passes first.

Alimony Issues With Kurt

Doherty asked for $15,434 per month in spousal support from ex-husband Kurt Iswarienko. A proposed settlement was offered by Iswarienko in October 2023 but was rejected by Doherty because it “skirted around the issues of his original works created during marriage.” She has also claimed that her ex-husband is spending his money on extravagant trips and designer items instead.  With an average spendable income of $672,916 over the past 3 years, approximately $56,076 per month, Iswarienko has over 2.5 times the income of Doherty. This gap will only grow if Doherty continues to be unable to work.

“I do not take responsibility for the demise of our marriage, I take responsibility for some of the issues in our marriage. I take responsibility not only because of how I was but because of how cancer impacted my marriage and how it impacted him the second time around.”

Shannen and Kurt’s History

The couple first began dating in early 2008. They were married three years later in 2011, the planning of their wedding was filmed for their reality TV series Shannen Says. The 8-episode series follows Doherty and Iswarienko through planning their wedding. Famous event planner David Tutera helped the couple through the process. When Doherty was diagnosed with Breast cancer in 2015, Iswarienko was by her side. In December 2023, shortly before undergoing brain surgery to remove a tumor, Doherty found out that her husband was allegedly having an affair. In January 2023 the couple split due to irreconcilable differences, hinting at issues in their marriage. As Shannen Doherty continues to battle breast cancer, her struggles with ex-husband Kurt Iswarienko continue as well.