Jamie Theakston has shared that he has been diagnosed with stage-one cancer.
On Tuesday morning, the Heart Breakfast presenter shared a message with his Instagram followers, which he read out on air.
His message explained: “As you know, I recently had an operation to remove a lesion from my vocal cords.
“The biopsy has identified this as stage one laryngeal cancer. So, I have cancer – but cancer doesn’t have me.”
Jamie said that he would be taking a short leave of absence from Heart Breakfast while he recovers from the procedure, but insisted that his “prognosis is very positive” and that he was “hoping to be back with you in October”.
“Until then I’ve been told to give my voice a rest and leave you in the mostly capable hands of JK and Amanda,” he added. “Big thanks to them and all the Global family who have been unbelievably supportive.”
His co-host Amanda Holden also shared the news on air during Tuesday’s broadcast, telling listeners: “Even though it’s been identified as cancer, it is not all bad news.”
“The prognosis is very positive and Jamie has an amazing team that is going to get this sorted,” guest host Jason King continued. “He’s going to be OK, he’s hoping to be back with us very soon. And you know what Jamie’s like, as well – Jamie has been on this show for 20 years, he’s done this show for a long time this show is all about feel-good, it’s all about having a good time, it’s making sure you go to work or whatever you’re doing in the morning, going there with a smile, and he does not want that to change.”
Amanda agreed: “He has told us that we’ve got to hold the fort and he’s told us that the show must go on, and absolutely that’s what we’re going to do, we are going to do him proud.”
Jamie has fronted Heart Breakfast since 2005, presenting with Harriet Scott and Emma Bunton before Amanda took over as his co-host in 2018.
His other notable broadcasting credits include Top Of The Pops, Live & Kicking and the mockumentary interview series Rock Profile.