Erin Andrews reveals NFL stars CRIED over her cancer diagnosis as she opens up on stalker trauma after he secretly filmed her naked in hotel

Sportscaster Erin Andrews has opened up on the trauma caused by her stalker, including the moment she thought it had ruined her career, and the emotional reactions to her 2016 cancer diagnosis from around the NFL. 

In 2009, Michael David Barrett pleaded guilty to renting hotel rooms next to Andrews in three cities, rigging peepholes and secretly shooting nude videos of her with his cellphone in Nashville and Columbus, Ohio.

He then uploaded the clips onto the web - which ultimately led to the then-ESPN reporter filing a lawsuit against her stalker and the Nashville hotel, landing him in prison.

Just as the sexual harassment trial was wrapping up, Andrews was diagnosed with cervical cancer. 

'I wake up one morning and there's video of me all over the internet,' she told the New York Post. 

'And I called my parents. I always get emotional about that, because I know my parents suffered a lot. I start screaming to them, "My career is over. I am finished. This is going to ruin me!"'

Barrett admitted to stalking Andrews in three cities and altering hotel room peepholes and shooting videos in Nashville and Columbus, Ohio, and uploading them on the Internet.

A Tennessee jury awarded Andrews $55 million in damages after Barrett managed to secretly film the TV personality while she was naked in the Nashville Marriot Hotel. 

The 54-year-old stalker spent two-and-a-half years in prison following his stalking conviction.

'I had a public trial. I had to prove to a lot of people that I didn't put those pictures up of myself,' she added. 

'That was a really tough thing for my family. I would walk around stadiums and just think, "Everybody in this stadium has seen me naked, and I didn't have a choice." It was really hard.'

In 2016, Andrews faced another battle when she was diagnosed with cervical cancer and had to undergo two surgeries. 

Dedicated to her job, Andrews continued to work - even a day after surgery - and kept her diagnosis under wraps until the Super Bowl. 

The sidelines reporter was left stunned by the outpour of heartwarming reactions and support from her colleagues and athletes when she did eventually go public with her diagnosis.

'I had grown men who are superstars in the NFL call me, and text me, and pull me aside on the sidelines to cry. They said they were so grateful that I was vocal about cervical cancer.'

Andrews has previously explained that the cancer diagnosis also came right as the sexual harassment trial was wrapping up for her. 

She said when the secret nude photos of her first showed up online, her dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer in the heat of it all.  

Then, five years later just as the trial was ending, she was diagnosed. 

During the trial, prosecutors accused Barrett of contacting a total of 14 hotels to try to get information on Andrews' reservations.

It was also revealed during the court case that he tried to sell the footage to TMZ, but the publication denied. 

He then posted the videos himself online, where they quickly went viral, receiving more than 17 million views.

Barrett was released from prison in 2012 after 20 months behind bars. Andrews went on to sue the Marriott hotel in Nashville and several other defendants claiming negligence, infliction of emotional distress, and invasion of privacy in 2016, asking for $75 million in damages.

Her lawsuit alleged that hotel management confirmed to Barrett where she was staying, disclosed her room number without permission, and then allowed the stalker to stay in adjacent rooms. 

Andrews, originally from Lewiston, Maine, rose to fame in 2004 after she became an ESPN correspondent, where she worked for eight years before she moved to Fox Sports. She's also known for co-hosting Dancing with the Stars from 2014 to 2019.