Beth Chapman of the reality TV show “Dog the Bounty Hunter” is battling throat cancer.

Chapman, who is married to Duane “Dog” Chapman, will have surgery possibly this weekend for stage 2 throat cancer, said Mona Wood, a family spokeswoman, Thursday. Wood said Beth Chapman, who lives in the Portlock neighborhood of East Oahu, had lost weight recently and “was in the best shape of her life.”

Beth Chapman wrote in a letter to friends:

“As most of you know I’ve spent a lifetime facing tests and challenges I didn’t see coming and certainly never expected. I’ve been dealt my share of unexpected blows over the course of my almost fifty years but nothing as serious as the one I heard from my doctors two weeks ago when they uttered those dreaded three words, ‘You have cancer.’

“After months of a nagging cough, a routine checkup resulted in a diagnosis of stage 2 throat cancer,” she said. “I have what is referred to as a T2 Tumor in my throat that is blocking my breathing. My doctors are suggesting immediate treatment and surgery before the disease progresses.

“To be certain, I’ve stared down the devil more than once in my life but I’ve never faced a real life or death decision. My life has never been easy, and I surely don’t expect it to start now. Still, I’ve never been a victim and I won’t let cancer beat me. I realize the road I am about to travel will be rocky, full of unexpected twists and turns. But I know one thing for sure. A bend in the road is not the end of the road.

“There is no quick fix and no appealing options for treatment. Yes, cancer sucks,” she continued. “While I know my diagnosis, until I come out of my surgery, I do not yet know my prognosis. If all goes well, my doctors will be able to get the tumor.”