Los Angeles - Former sex symbol Farah Fawcett, reportedly terminally ill with cancer, has blasted paparazzi and the celebrity culture for invading her privacy and spoiling the last years of her life.

In an interview published Monday in the Los Angeles Times the star of the original Charlie's Angels, who is reported to be close to death, said the unwanted attention had made her battle with cancer more difficult.

"It's much easier to go through something and deal with it without being under a microscope," said the terminally ill star, 62. "It was stressful. I was terrified of getting the chemo. It's not pleasant. And the radiation is not pleasant."

"I'm a private person," Fawcett said. "I'm shy about people knowing things. And I'm really shy about my medical (care). It would be good if I could just go and heal and then when I decided to go out, it would be okay. It seems that there are areas that should be off-limits."

"I'm holding onto the hope that there is some reason that I got cancer and there is something - that may not be very clear to me right now but that I will do."

The interview was released days after her long-time companion Ryan O'Neal revealed that Fawcett had stopped treatment in what was seen as an indication that she was close to death.

Other reports said that her jailed son had been given special dispensation to see her and that she had also said goodbye to her 91- year-old father with a note: "I've lived a full and wonderful life. I've loved and been loved. I'm happy. I'm ready."

Fawcett conducted the interview with the Los Angeles Times in August, but asked the paper to withhold publication for a later date. A two-hour documentary about her battle with cancer titled Farrah's Story will air on US television this Friday.