Kellie Pickler shaves her head for friendship, cancer awareness

In what’s becoming known as one of the sweetest acts of friendship to set the blogosphere abuzz, “American Idol” alum Kellie Pickler shaved her head in support of her best friend, Summer Holt Miller, who had a mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer.

On Wednesday the women cut off their locks for the world to see on “Good Morning America,” and since then Twitter has been filled with support for Miller. The same day, a touched Pickler tweeted, “I cannot thank everyone enough for all the love and support you’ve given Summer. Chemo starts tomorrow. #SayAPrayerForSummer”

Celebrity reaction to the act has been uniformly positive with Ellen DeGeneres expressing the general mood in a tweet saying, “You have never looked more beautiful.”

The act has served to raise awareness for early detection of breast cancer. Miller is 35, and usually women wait until 40 to have their first mammogram, but in this case it was an early visit that saved Miller’s life. She has been declared cancer-free, and the chemo is the final stage of her treatment, but the side effects, including sickness and loss of hair, can be harsh.

In the meantime, friends, family and Pickler’s fans are anxiously awaiting news of how the first treatment went and looking to Miller for inspiration to face down life’s most difficult problems.

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