Television presenter Davina McCall has announced she will undergo brain surgery after being diagnosed with a rare benign tumour. The 57-year-old said the colloid cyst, which affects around three in a million people, was discovered during a health check-up offered as part of her menopause advocacy work.
In a video posted on Instagram, McCall explained that she initially hesitated but after consulting several neurosurgeons, she decided to have the 14mm tumour removed. “It needs to come out because if it grows it would be bad,” she said. The procedure, a craniotomy, involves temporarily removing part of the skull.
McCall said she is in “good spirits” and expects to be in hospital for about nine days, followed by a period of recovery at home. She will be “off my phone for a while” and her partner, Michael Douglas, will provide updates on her condition.
Douglas wrote on her account: “She is in great shape and in very good hands. I’ll do the odd update… The support of people is amazingly powerful.” McCall, who formerly hosted Big Brother and currently presents ITV’s My Mum, Your Dad, has been a vocal advocate for women’s health issues.
