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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Entertainment
Sami Quadri

Davina McCall shares emotional health update after getting the all-clear following brain tumour surgery

Davina McCall - (PA Wire)

TV presenter Davina McCall has revealed she has received the all-clear following surgery to remove a brain tumour discovered last year.

The star, 57, announced in November that doctors had diagnosed her with a colloid cyst, a rare type of benign brain tumour affecting approximately three in a million people.

Davina underwent a six-hour operation on November 15 to remove the 14mm cyst after it was detected during a routine health check.

Sharing the positive news on Instagram on Saturday, Davina appeared in a video alongside her partner Michael Douglas, where she provided an emotional health update following her final MRI scan this week.

Posting previously unseen before-and-after scans showing the tumour completely gone, Davina wrote:"So here it is. Our final brain surgery update. Had the final MRI this week. @brain.surgeon.uk got everything out during surgery, it's not coming back."

She continued: "Thanks so so much to everyone at @onewelbeck and @clevelandclinic. To my mum and @mdlondon for taking such good care of me. To Sarah for being my BFF to my amazing kids. To @brain.surgeon.uk for being the GOAT."

She added: "I am so so grateful particularly because I know a lot of people have inoperable tumours and and I know I'm lucky to be able to draw a line under this and move on with my life when so many people can't. And I'm just gonna say this one more time. Benign does not mean fine."

In the joyful video, Davina and celebrity hairdresser Michael said they wanted to share their "final brain operation update," with Michael enthusiastically adding: "It's good news!"

Davina explained she had felt "nervous" before the scan, admitting she'd feared that if any tumour remained, it might grow back and she'd have to "go through the whole thing again." Michael echoed this, saying he too had been nervous as it had been "a huge journey."

Laughing with relief, Davina then revealed: "but it was clear!"

The pair held up two MRI scans—the first showing the tumour clearly visible in her brain, the second showing no trace of it after surgery.

Expressing gratitude, Davina said: "I want to say a massive thank you to everybody that looked after me so well. A special heartfelt thank you from both of us to Kevin for being such an absolute legend."

She and Michael concluded the video by thanking their families, friends, and supportive fans, with Davina blowing a kiss to the camera.

Davina previously broke down in tears on live television during Comic Relief last month, as she emotionally reflected on her surgery, sharing how the experience deeply affected her outlook on life.

Speaking on the programme, she said: "Doctors found a brain tumour and after thinking about it for a while I decided it would be best to have it removed."

As her voice cracked with emotion, Davina continued: "This whole experience, kind of weighing up all the risks and all the positive things about having this tumour removed made me really think deeply about what life is really about and what matters when life gets tough."

She added: "I needed the brilliance and the skills of lots of experts to make me okay. And oh my goodness, I've needed the love and support of friends and my family, and in particular, my Michael to get me through."

Davina concluded: "It really made me think that there are so many people who are in trouble and danger and they don't have the support that I had. I was really lucky."

Explaining the situation when she first revealed her diagnosis last year, Davina had said: "I was offered a health scan which I thought I was going to ace but it turned out I had benign brain tumour which is very rare, three in a million."

She admitted: "I slightly put my head in the sand for a while, I saw a few neurosurgeons, had quite a lot of opinions and realised I needed to take it out. It's quite big, it's 14mm wide and it needs to come out because if it grows it would be bad. I'm having it removed. Say a prayer for me. I'm in good spirits."

Although she was at no immediate risk, doctors had been concerned that if the tumour grew larger, it could cause serious complications.

A colloid cyst is a slow-growing, benign tumour typically located near the centre of the brain, containing gelatinous material.

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