Celebs Go Dating star and rapper Professor Green, whose real name is Stephen Manderson, has revealed a painful health setback: his bowel hernia has returned nearly a decade after his original surgery for the same issue.
The 42-year-old shared the update with fans on Instagram alongside a concerning image showing the growth pushing outward beneath a scar from his previous operation. He tried to lighten the mood by giving the hernia a nickname, jokingly referring to it as Henry while updating fans on his ongoing health battle.
In his Instagram post, he wrote: "Life's been a lot lately…I've learned I'm not totally free from historic patterns, and in almost the same breath learned I catch things well before I ever did previously, and am (on good days) able to observe my thoughts spiralling without spiralling with them."
The musician explained the recurrence had only just happened and said the timing could not be worse given other medical issues he has recently faced. Professor Green shared: "This hernia recurrence happened yesterday and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a weight I could do without given everything else health wise that's going on…out of my control though."
Although it must be deeply upsetting to face this health setback, the London-born star said he is currently trying to channel his emotions surrounding his medical issues into his music. The performer revealed he plans to debut a new track during his upcoming shows. He added: "I'm playing the next single tonight, tomorrow, all through the Example tour and at every show till it drops."
Professor Green first had surgery to repair the hernia in 2017, but tragically suffered an extremely rare allergic reaction to the surgical mesh used in the procedure. At the time, he was reportedly only the second person in the world to experience this reaction. The complication triggered a series of serious health problems, including a partially collapsed lung, pneumonia, and severe abdominal swelling.
This hernia update comes shortly after the rapper revealed another worrying diagnosis. Doctors recently discovered several tumours in his body, linked to a rare genetic condition known as schwannomatosis, which causes benign growths to develop on the sufferer's nerves.
The rapper explained his diagnosis to followers, saying: "Genes are funny old things. The combo of my parents handed me adhd, autism, pyloric stenosis, factor VII deficiency and the latest addition: schwannomatosis. My nerve sheath tumours are thankfully benign, but chronic and not without complications - some more than others depending on their location."
He previously had four painful growths removed from his head and neck, and new scans revealed additional tumours behind his eye and along his spine. Professor Green admitted the emotional toll of waiting to learn whether the tumours were cancerous was more difficult than enduring the actual physical symptoms.
He explained: "After a good few weeks of worrying about whether or not they were benign or malignant, I feel as though, as painful as this is…the trauma I went through in my head living out worst-case scenarios was worse."
If you or anyone you know is affected by NF - Schwannomatosis, NF1, NF2-SWN - please contact Nerve Tumours UK. You can speak to specialist NF / Schwannomatosis Advisors on their helpline directly.
