General Hospital star Cameron Mathison and his wife, Vanessa Mathison, are getting divorced after more than two decades together.
“After 22 years of marriage, we have made the difficult decision to separate,” the couple announced in a joint statement shared exclusively with ET. “We enter this new chapter with deep love, kindness and respect for each other. We have gratitude in our hearts for the wonderful years we have shared together.”
The statement continues: “Our children have been and will continue to be our highest priority, and we will always share our devotion and love for them.”
Cameron, 54, and Vanessa, 57, have two children: Lucas, 21, and Leila, 18.
“We remain friends, and we both wish each other the best,” the statement concluded. “We sincerely appreciate your respect for our family’s privacy during this transition.”
Cameron and Vanessa met in 1998 when they were both models working in New York City. They began dating the following year and married on July 27, 2002.
In April 2022, ET spoke with Cameron — a former ET correspondent — and Vanessa about acting together in an episode of General Hospital.
Cameron stars on the ABC soap opera as Drew Cainwhile Vanessa starred as an executive coach named Mia in three episodes.
“It was a dream come true,” Vanessa told ET at the time, before admitting she was “terrified” about the idea of starring in the series, of which she has been a longtime fan.
The fear wasn’t one-sided, with Cameron telling ET: “We were both nervous. I was nervous. I could tell Vanessa was nervous… so I started getting even more nervous.”
Cameron reflected on their long romance at the time, telling ET, “We’ve been married for 20 years, coming up this summer, and it hasn’t all been smooth sailing, for sure. We went through some tough times the first five years. Getting through those times, and being able to call Vanessa my best friend and enjoy every moment together, has been better than I could have ever imagined marriage would be for me.”
Among these “difficult times” was 2019, when Cameron revealed that he was diagnosed with kidney cancer and underwent surgery. Fortunately, the cancer was caught early and was the least aggressive form of the disease. At the time, Cameron shared that his doctor said his healthy diet and lifestyle kept it from “growing and spreading to other areas.”
“I’m feeling so good,” Cameron told ET in June. “I work really hard at this and I take it very seriously, as far as this transformation and recovery from the cancer journey, specifically. But also[in terms of]longevity and continuing to do blood tests, bowel tests, hormone tests, and then doing my MRIs and CT scans. And I continue to do the best I can.”
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