Davina McCall to have brain surgery to remove tumour
Davina McCall has been taken in for surgery after doctors found a tumour on her brain.
In a new video posted to her Instagram account, Davina explained: “Hi, so I’m posting this it will be Friday morning. I’m posting it because a few months ago I did a menopause talk for a company and they offered me a health scan in return, which I thought I was going to ace, but it turned out I had a benign brain tumour called a colloid cyst, which is very rare.
She added: “Three in a million! So I slightly put my head in the sand for a while, and then I saw quite a few neurosurgeons, I got lots of opinions. I realised that I have to get it taken out.
“It’s big for the space – it fills the space. It’s 14mm wide. And it needs to come out because if it grows it would be bad.”
Davina then explained what surgery she will undergo to fight the tumour.
Davina McCall has been diagnosed with a brain tumour (Image: Getty)
She said: “It will be removed via a craniotomy – they go through the top of my head here, and through the two halves of my brain to the middle, get the cyst, empty it, take it out, and Bob’s your uncle. So say a prayer for me. I am in good spirits.”
Her partner Michael Douglas appeared on the video to reassure fans: “Just letting people know that I will have my eye on her throughout this procedure! In fact I offered to do the operation, just to make sure it was done properly! They wouldn’t let me. She’s in very good hands.
“Also, I’m okay. It’s been up and down, obviously. We’ve been through a lot,” Davina added.
The pair seemed in good spirits as Michael joked: “But the important thing is her parting has stayed in the same place. My job will be safe.”
Davina reassured her followers in an Instagram video (Image: Davina McCall / Instagram)
Davina explained that she’ll face a lengthy hospital stay after the surgery, telling viewers: “The recovery, I’m going to be in hospital for about nine days, and then I’m going to be going home, but I’m gonna be off my phone for a while. So Michael might fill you in.”
Michael quipped: “Yeah I could maybe do the odd post, dress up as you, do some menopause talks and stuff like that. Keep everybody in the loop,” making his partner giggle.
But Davina urged fans: “He’s going to let you guys know how I’m doing. But I don’t want you to worry about me, I’m doing that enough as it is.”
“Yes there’s plenty of worrying going on here,” her beau replied.
Davina’s partner Michael Douglas was on hand to support her (Image: Davina McCall / Instagram)
“I’m in a good space and I have all the faith in the world in my surgeon and his team, and I am handing the reins over to him. He knows what he’s doing, and I’m gonna do the getting better bit after,” she added.
Signing off with: “See you on the other side!” Davina posted the video, with her partner Michael captioning it: “Hey everyone. Michael here. @davinamccall will be ‘off grid’ for a bit while she recovers from this brain operation. She is in great shape and in very good hands. I’ll do the odd update from her account here for anyone interested.
“I’m sure she’ll read all the comments when she’s able to so feel free to send love. The support of people is amazingly powerful. Have a great day everyone.”
Davina discovered the tumour during a routine health scan (Image: Getty)
Fans and friends rushed to the comments section to send their love, with Coronation Street actress Georgia Taylor simply penning three love heart emojis.
Someone else told the Big Brother star: “Sending you positive energy and healing vibes so that you bounce back quickly.”
And another fan echoed: “Sending huge love and strength to you beautiful lady.” While someone else said: “Saying prayers, sending love and thinking of you. You’ve got this.”
According to the London Neurosurgery Partnership, colloid cyts are “small fluid-filled sacs located in or around the lateral and third ventricle of the brain.”
The website adds: “Because of its location in the ventricles, a colloid cyst can sometimes cause a blockage of cerebral spinal fluid (CSF). CSF is located in the ventricles where is protects and cushions the brain and spinal cord, if the flow of CSF is interrupted it can cause a person to develop hydrocephalus (excess CSF in the brain) as the colloid cyst is disrupting the body’s natural circulation of fluid.”
Davina worried she was developing dementia after her dad’s diagnosis (Image: Getty)
Although they’re non-cancerous, the cysts can cause everything from headaches to memory loss and comas. They can compress brain structures responsible for processing memory signals.
Months before her diagnosis, Davina worried she could be developing dementia when brain fog she put down to the menopause began affecting her.
She told Fabulous magazine: “The brain fog… I remember sitting on the drive and looking at some grass, thinking: ‘What’s the word for that?’ I thought it was some kind of dementia.”
As her dad was also diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, Davina worried she too had developed early-onset dementia, sharing on Gabby Logan’s The Mid Point podcast: “I’m learning different things for everything in my brain sometimes, because when I went to my doctor and I said, ‘Look, please help me, I think I’ve got Alzheimer’s because obviously my dad’s got Alzheimer’s’.
“And I was like, ‘I’m always paranoid – I know I haven’t really got it but am I OK?’ [The doctor] said, ‘It’s called cognitive overload’.”