Davina McCall shares emotional steps she took before brain surgery
Davina McCall has spoken out about the impact that her recent brain surgery had on her.
On November 15, the former Big Brother host announced that she needed to undergo major surgery to remove a benign colloid cyst, which she described as a “three in a million" brain tumour.
Now, several months on from her successful surgery, Davina has opened up about her experience.
Speaking on her own podcast Begin Again with Steven Bartlett, the 57-year-old admitted she previously thought she was “the healthiest person in the world".
“Once [the cyst] has filled the space, it can’t grow anymore or it can start causing damage. It can also cause, very rarely, sudden death,” Davina explained, revealing that it was most likely present since her birth.
“I felt like this thing had taken control of me, and I was so angry about that. I couldn’t let it go. I was like, ‘How dare you control my daily life like this and make me feel every day like I’m in danger?’ It’s a horrible feeling,” she admitted, adding: “It’s different to cancer, but it’s also awful. Benign does not mean fine.”
Davina then went on to state the preparations that she made with her partner Michael before her surgery, in case she did not survive.
“I addressed my will and made sure that was airtight. I talked to Michael about my wishes. I wrote letters of wishes to all the children and put those in my will. I made sure that when I went to sleep before the operation, I could trust in [the surgeon] and let go of the outcome,” the TV presenter shared.
Addressing a group chat she created with her loved ones, she noted: “Do you know what I was thinking when I made the WhatsApp group is, if something bad happened, who do I not want to hear it from a paper?”
“It was people like you, who I work with, who I really care about. And then there were obviously my family members. And it was quite nice putting that list together because I thought, ‘I have so many people I really care about in my life,’” Davina concluded.
