Radio 1 DJ Adele Roberts has said she loves her body “more than ever” as she posed for the cover of a magazine with a visible stoma bag.
The 43-year-old presenter revealed in October she was undergoing treatment for stomach cancer and later had a tumour removed through surgery.
She now uses a stoma bag, which attaches to her abdomen and collects her faeces, and has also been undergoing chemotherapy.
Roberts discussed staying strong mentally throughout her treatment during a photoshoot with Women’s Health UK.
She said: “Being diagnosed with cancer has meant I’ve learned to appreciate my body; be grateful that it works; be grateful they found the tumour in time to remove it and be grateful (that modern medicine means I can) have a stoma.
“I feel like I love my body more than ever.”
Roberts admitted she has spent a lot of time feeling “upset” about her diagnosis and added: “When I was in hospital, recovering after my surgeries, I would overhear conversations of other women on the ward and learn they had a much worse diagnosis than me – maybe terminal cancer – and that’s when I’d feel down.
Last week, Adele appeared on ITV's Loose Women and spoke about chemotherapy.
She said: "It really affects my skin so I've got layers of skin missing from my hands and my feet as well, I've got dark marks on my tongue."
Panellist Janet Street-Porter asked Adele what the next thing is that she wants to achieve now that she's finished her course of treatment.
"That's a great question. I think the next thing is to hopefully go on holiday, hopefully be on the beach with my little stoma," Adele replied.
Referring to her stoma bag named Audrey, Adele continued: "So to help me recover from the cancer I've got a stoma and I've got a little bag to show you if that's okay?"
Taking the small bag out, she explained: "This is the bag that I wear and it sticks on the tummy just like that."
"And is that for life or will you say goodbye to Audrey?" Jane then asked her.
"It will be reversible eventually," Adele replied, before adding: "You know, you saying that makes me feel emotional because she's got me through so much and she's helped save my life and I will be sad when she goes away."
Adele was joined at the ITV studios by her girlfriend Kate Holderness who has constantly been by her side throughout her treatment.
Roberts, from Southport, Merseyside, first found fame in Channel 4 ’s Big Brother series in 2002 where one of her housemates was Jade Goody, who died in 2009 after being diagnosed with cervical cancer.
She joined the BBC in 2012 as part of the Radio 1 Xtra team, before moving to Radio 1 in 2015 to host the Early Breakfast Show and last year she took over the Weekend Breakfast programme.
