I'm a Celebrity's Dean Gaffney says show 'saved his life'
I'm a Celebrity star Dean Gaffney has revealed how the show 'saved his life' after a health scare.
Speaking to The Mirror, Gaffney, who appeared on this year's I'm a Celebrity... South Africa, said that he was rushed to hospital following medical checks for a previous series of the reality show.
According to the former EastEnders star, he was on standby to appear in I'm a Celebrity's 2020 series, which took place at the Gwrych Castle, Abergele in North Wales, when a routine health check revealed that he was losing blood.
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Gaffney was taken for further tests which confirmed he had polyps in his large intestine, and was operated on immediately.
"There is no doubt I'm a Celeb and its medical team saved my life," Gaffney said. "I might not be here today if it wasn't for them finding what they did. Within hours I was in a hospital gown and under general anaesthetic and they took it out."
Following the operation, Gaffney said that the doctor issued him a warning, saying: "Had you not come to us today, in three years that could have turned to bowel cancer. You've been very lucky."
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of the late Bowelbabe fundraiser Dame Deborah James, Gaffney is now encouraging fans to get checked and to take notice of their stools.
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"Dame Deborah was an inspiration to so many. I've so much respect for her fight and the awareness she raised for bowel cancer," he said. "If I can do a small fraction of that for men, it'd make me very happy.
"I'm so grateful to the people on the show for bringing it to my attention. I check my stools all the time now. I'd urge others to do it, too."
If you would like more information or support about living with cancer or treatment, please click here for guidance from MacMillan Cancer Support, or click here to learn more from Stand Up to Cancer.
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