Shannen Doherty’s dog detected breast cancer

Shannen Doherty’s dog was the first to detect her breast cancer.

The 45-year-old actress was diagnosed with the gruelling disease in February 2015 but she believes her pet pooch Bowie knew something was wrong long before that as she kept "obsessively" sniffing her right breast.

Speaking to ‘Entertainment Tonight’, Shannen explained: "She [Bowie] would obsessively sniff right here on my right side for a long time before. So, it made sense when I got diagnosed."

The brunette beauty underwent a single mastectomy in May this year and has currently undergone three out of eight rounds of chemotherapy since she found out the brutal disease had spread to her lymph nodes.

And whenever she returns from treatment, Shannen finds her beloved dog even more "protective" than usual.

She said: "When I got back from surgery, [Bowie] was kind of right in this area. Then when I had my first chemo, she would sniff my entire body up and down. She was always protective before, but she has become this crazy, protective dog. It’s hard to get close to me when she’s around."

While she is trying to remain positive about the future, Shannen still has a long journey ahead as she has to complete another five rounds of chemotherapy and then embark on a course of radiotherapy.

Meanwhile, it hasn’t just been her adorable dog that’s been by her side throughout the entire ordeal as her photographer husband Kurt Iswarienko, whom she married five years ago, has been nothing but a rock to her.

She said recently: "I could not have gotten through this without my husband. My marriage was always strong, but it’s made my marriage a thousand times stronger. He’s never missed a chemo. He’s never missed a sick day."