BBC presenter Nick Owen has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.
The 75-year-old newsreader and host of BBC Midlands Today revealed on Monday that he had been informed of his diagnosis in April, and has since undergone surgery.
Speaking on Midlands Today, Nick said that 13 April – the day he received the news from doctors – would be “a date [that] will forever be imprinted on my mind”.
“I went to a specialist, he wasn’t too worried because my figures weren’t that high,” he explained. “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.”
Doctors then told Nick that his cancer was “extensive and aggressive” and that “something needed to be done pretty fast”.
“And that was probably the worst day of my life, or certainly one of them,” he added.
“It was a very grim moment … driving home after that sort of news and ringing people, texting people, my phone went crazy for hours on end. And it was a very, very difficult time for me, and indeed for my wife, Vicki, who was by my side all the time through this.”
A scan before his surgery gave the news presenter “a beacon of hope”, showing that the cancer had not spread. On the advice of specialists, Nick underwent a radical prostatectomy, in which the whole prostate gland is removed.
Recovering from the surgery had been “a bumpy ride”, he said, stating: “Although I’m not exactly myself at the moment, I do feel a lot more like it.”
Nick went on to reveal that he is “desperate to get back” in the studio, and plans to return to Midlands Today on a more full-time basis in the autumn.
“Nick has been one of the faces of Midlands Today for more than 25 years,” the BBC said in a statement. “Our viewers and his colleagues have missed him dearly in recent weeks. We can’t wait to welcome him back to the studio as soon as he’s ready. We all wish him a speedy recovery.”
Nick started his career as a sports reporter and commentator, eventually becoming a main presenter of the BBC’s Good Morning show alongside Anne Diamond.
He and Anne would go on to host Good Morning With Anne And Nick on BBC One from 1992 to 1996. Nick joined BBC Midlands today the following year, and also served as the chairman of Luton Town FC from 2008 to 2017.
Prostate cancer affects one in eight men in the UK, and Nick implored other men to go to the doctor for a check up if they had any concerns.
“For goodness sake, speak to a doctor about it and get it checked because if it’s caught early - and I know it’s a bit of a sort of medical cliché - but if it’s caught early, you’ve got a chance,” he said.