Debbie McGee has revealed she has undergone surgery after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
The 60-year-old, who made the final of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ in 2017, underwent surgery earlier this month to remove two tumours from her left breast.
Debbie believes the operation was a success, and is convinced her breast cancer was brought on by the stress of losing her husband, magician Paul Daniels, in 2016.
She told The Sun: “I’ve never been through the stress I’ve been through since I lost Paul.
“Grief hits you in so many ways you’re not expecting. It’s not all about sadness.
“I’ve got a friend who lost her husband four years ago. She’s younger than me but she got it (cancer) as well.
“We both discussed it and said stress.”
Debbie was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in October and now says she’s the “luckiest person in the world” after doctors then gave her the all-clear.
She added: “Although I’ve had mammograms every two years I never thought for a minute I’d ever have it myself. It scared me to death.
“They were talking about full mastectomy, taking flesh from my thighs. That was really scary given my dancing — and I was all on my own.
“I thought, ‘This is a moment when Paul isn’t here with me’. It was much tougher to take.
“You’re very vulnerable in lots of ways that you weren’t before.”
Following her stint on ‘Strictly’, Debbie revealed she was ready for a new relationship, two years after the death of her husband.
She told Hello magazine: “I don’t want to be on my own for the rest of my life. I love male company, am full of energy and don’t want to be stuck at home alone.
“Although I have male friends that take me out for lunches and dinners, I wouldn’t describe them as dates.
“Nobody has actually asked me out yet, but when they do, I’ll go.”
"It leaves you so flattened," the actress said following her cancer treatment.
"I’m not sure I could go back to theatre work, although film work is more tiring. I’m frightened to work in theatre now. I feel very uncertain. I haven’t done it for a while."
"Having had cancer, one important thing to know is you're still the same person at the end. You're stripped down to near zero," she told Good Housekeeping back in 2014.
"But most people come out the other end feeling more like themselves than ever before."
"The first time you have chemo is a bit scary, because you have no idea how you’re going to feel," she said.
"But let me tell you this: it’s basically like the most enormous hangover you’ve ever had in your whole life; it’s like a night on mixed spirits, wine and grappa. It’s a real cracker. It’s a humdinger."
"The unknown is always the scariest part," she told ET Online.
"Is the chemo going to work? Is the radiation going to work? You know, am I going to have to go through this again, or am I going to get secondary cancer? Everything else is manageable. Pain is manageable, you know living without a breast is manageable, it's the worry of your future and how your future is going to affect the people that you love."
"I learned very quickly how important it was for me to think positively," she said on her website.
"When the second friend I called with the news burst into tears, I thought - this is too stressful. I had to find someone else to handle the day to day discussions of my health so I could concentrate on healing."
"We never hid anything from the kids. They were a huge part of my decision because I wanted to be around for them," she told People magazine.
"I feel whole again, I really do. I've told them, 'Mommy's boo-boo is much better now.'"
"For me, it wasn’t a big decision, it was a no-brainer. I didn’t want to live the rest of my life with that shadow hanging over me," she said at the time.
"I didn’t even think of my breasts in a nostalgic way, I just wanted to be able to live my life without that fear all the time."
"It’s not 'pity me', it’s a decision I made that’s got rid of this weight that I was carrying around."
'It's still quite shocking. Today I got very scared... I just get very scared and it hit me [sic]. But I am not gonna let that define me, the fear," she said.
"I became fearful for my two children, my loving fiancé Rocky, we have a grandson, aged four, his name is baby Aby. I just thought they are gonna flip out."
In 2008, she said being the daughter of a cancer survivor helped her get through the difficult period.
"As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor, knowing my personal risk made me more aware and more empowered when I faced my own diagnosis," she said.
"I want to help Susan G. Komen for the Cure [breast cancer charity] educate the 1.1 million women around the globe who face a diagnosis each year."
She's now raising money for Cancer Research UK by appearing on 'Strictly Come Dancing'.
"After beating breast cancer twice, I'm really passionate about trying to do something to help change the odds for others who are affected by this terrible disease," she says on her fundraising page.
"It's so important for everyone to know what's normal for them and see their doctor with any changes, as spotting cancer at an early stage can make a huge difference."