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Heartbreaking moment BBC star Nick Owen breaks down live on air

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6 months ago

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Heartbreaking moment BBC star Nick Owen breaks down live on air

  • BBC Midlands Today colleague read out emotional messages, prompting tears
  • The 76-year-old was awarded an MBE for services to charity and broadcasting 



Veteran BBC presenter Nick Owen broke down on air as he discussed his cancer battle with colleagues and received a touching message from his son.

Paying tribute to work that saw the 76-year-old awarded an MBE earlier this year,  BBC Midlands Today colleague Ben Godfrey read out a selection of messages that caused Mr Owen to well up.

A message from bereavement charity Edward’s Trust said: ‘He’s become part of our family. He’s always found time to support us in our work His MBE is well deserved.’

Another message said: ‘I got tested myself after his illness and was diagnosed late last year with prostate cancer. So far, it looks like early detection has paid off.’

Nick’s own son, Tim, said ‘very proud of you Dad’, as the TV stalwart stifled sobs.

The broadcaster was overwhelmed by the tribute

He has been praised for raising cancer awareness

‘My Tim… oh bless you. And I do want to thank everyone who’s been in touch, you know, and so supportive’, Mr Owen managed to add.

‘And I’m so grateful that people have responded to the message in the first place about prostate cancer because that’s such an important thing.

‘People are talking about it far more now. Not just because of me, but various people have been in the same situation.’

The former TV-am host has been was battling ‘extensive’ and ‘aggressive’ prostate cancer in August, and has since been successfully treated. 

He previously told the Deadly Silent Podcast: ‘I’ve been through the middle of it. And I realised that the sooner you get seen the better.

‘We had an MRI, there was a hint there was something going on. Then I had a biopsy. And that would tell us that it was really nasty and aggressive. And we need to do something quickly.

He was rewarded for his work with a recent MBE

The messages included one from his own son

He shed tears of happiness during the interview

He admits his first decision was to tell his four adult children, three of them boys, so they could be aware of the potentially hereditary illness and its warning signs

‘Telling my children was difficult. I’ve got four children, three are our boys, two in their forties and one in their late thirties, and it was quite emotional.’

He added: ‘Also, as far as the boys [Andy, Tim and Chris] are concerned, it’s a warning because it can be a hereditary thing.

‘I’m very keen for my boys to be extremely on the case. I’ll work on them to go earlier than 50, to be honest, to have the PSA tests. And the message has to be if you have got any hint of a worry, get someone to look at it.’

Owen received his diagnosis just weeks after his former TV-am co-presenter Anne Diamond, 68, revealed she is battling breast cancer and has undergone a mastectomy.

Along with their stint on TV-am, the pair had their own current affairs morning programme on the BBC in the 1990s, Good Morning With Anne And Nick.

Speaking about the debilitating impact the condition has had on his life, he has said: ‘I went to a specialist, he wasn’t too worried because my figures weren’t that high.

‘But he decided I ought to have a scan, and then the scan said there’s something dodgy going on, and then he sent me for a biopsy, which he did.

‘And the results of that were the killer – on April the 13th, a date (which) will forever be imprinted on my mind.

WHAT IS PROSTATE CANCER?



How many people does it kill? 

More than 11,800 men a year – or one every 45 minutes – are killed by the disease in Britain, compared with about 11,400 women dying of breast cancer.

It means prostate cancer is behind only lung and bowel in terms of how many people it kills in Britain. 

In the US, the disease kills 26,000 men each year.

Despite this, it receives less than half the research funding of breast cancer and treatments for the disease are trailing at least a decade behind.

How many men are diagnosed annually?

Every year, upwards of 52,300 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in the UK – more than 140 every day.   

How quickly does it develop? 

Prostate cancer usually develops slowly, so there may be no signs someone has it for many years, according to the NHS. 

If the cancer is at an early stage and not causing symptoms, a policy of ‘watchful waiting’ or ‘active surveillance’ may be adopted. 

Some patients can be cured if the disease is treated in the early stages.

But if it is diagnosed at a later stage, when it has spread, then it becomes terminal and treatment revolves around relieving symptoms.

Thousands of men are put off seeking a diagnosis because of the known side effects from treatment, including erectile dysfunction.

Tests and treatment

Tests for prostate cancer are haphazard, with accurate tools only just beginning to emerge. 

There is no national prostate screening programme as for years the tests have been too inaccurate.

Doctors struggle to distinguish between aggressive and less serious tumours, making it hard to decide on treatment.

Men over 50 are eligible for a ‘PSA’ blood test which gives doctors a rough idea of whether a patient is at risk.

But it is unreliable. Patients who get a positive result are usually given a biopsy which is also not fool-proof. 

Scientists are unsure as to what causes prostate cancer, but age, obesity and a lack of exercise are known risks. 

Anyone with any concerns can speak to Prostate Cancer UK’s specialist nurses on 0800 074 8383 or visit prostatecanceruk.org

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