( CNN ) -- Fans of `` Dancing With the Stars '' know how grueling the competition can be . Contestants practice for hours a day , and almost every season some celebs are brought low by injury . So how in the world will Valerie Harper , who just months ago announced that she had a terminal form of cancer , go for that mirror ball trophy ? Apparently with the same spirit that caused the `` Rhoda '' actress to offer this up for fans : . `` I hope you dance ! I hope you dance , '' Harper told CNN on Wednesday. `` And that 's what I 'm saying to everybody , that 's just my message . Dance . '' 'DWTS ' thinks big for 17th season cast . Harper announced in March that she had been diagnosed with leptomeningeal carcinomatosis , a condition in which cancer cells spread into the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord . But Harper told CNN that she does not have brain cancer . `` I have lung cancer , '' she said . `` It is situated in the lining of the brain ; it 's not even in the brain . '' Her husband , Tony Cacciotti , encouraged her to sign on with the hit ABC dance competition , she said . He runs the couple 's production company and had been considering her participation for a few years . The actress said she initially resisted the idea . `` I said , 'Give me one good reason , ' `` Harper recalled . `` He said , 'You have cancer ! Get up there , and show people that you can dance and do -- and the doctors said it 's fine to exercise . Encourage people to move , to exercise , to do all the things that will be good for them , and mainly not to sit in the house and glower and worry and feel sorry for yourself because you have this disease and anything else . ' '' Exercise is generally encouraged for patients , according to the American Cancer Society . `` At one time , patients with cancer , especially in the advanced stages , were often told by their doctor to rest and limit their exercise , '' the organization 's website says . `` But newer research has shown that exercise is not only safe and possible during cancer treatment , but that it also can reduce symptoms and improve quality of life . '' Actress Valerie Harper lives in the moment after cancer diagnosis . Harper , 74 , said she has been responding well to treatment , though she disputed reports she is in remission . Thinking about death makes everyone fearful , she said , `` and we gloss it over ; we pretend it 's not happening , that it 's over there . '' `` This death sentence made me look it in the eye , and then once you do it , it 's a great freedom , '' she said . The show 's host , Tom Bergeron , said Harper is in great spirits , even joking with him that `` Hey , I 'm past my expiration date ! '' `` I think arguably we have some of the ( most ) poignant story lines of all this season , particularly with Valerie , '' he said . Harper 's dance partner for the show , Tristan MacManus , said the actress ' participation goes beyond her being ill. `` It 's not about someone who 's sick doing something , '' he said . `` I think it 's just about someone who 's willing to do something . '' CNN 's Jacque Wilson contributed to this story .
Actress announced in all this season she has terminal cancer . The former `` the American Cancer Society '' star says she is responding well to treatment . Valerie Harper says she hopes to encourage others by joining ` Dancing With the Stars ''