Davina McCall today shocked fans after revealing she is undergoing brain surgery to remove a tumour.
In an Instagram post, the TV presenter, 57, said she had a ‘very rare’ colloid cyst, which is not cancerous, and affects just three in a million people.
The Masked Singer judge only received the diagnosis by chance after booking in for a full body scan.
‘I slightly put my head in the sand for a while, I saw a few neurosurgeons, had quite a lot of opinions and realised I needed to take it out,’ she said.
‘It’s quite big, it’s 14mm wide and it needs to come out because if it grows it would be bad. I’m having it removed.’
The slow-growing tumour, typically found near the centre of the brain, is non-cancerous. But being benign does not mean it is harmless.
If left to grow large enough they put sufferers at higher risk of memory difficulties or even comas. Untreated, they can even prove fatal.
Here MailOnline reveals everything you need to know about the condition.
In an Instagram post, the TV presenter, 57, said she had a ‘very rare’ colloid cyst, which affects just three in a million people. Pictured, Davina earlier this month
‘I slightly put my head in the sand for a while, I saw a few neurosurgeons, had quite a lot of opinions and realised I needed to take it out,’ she said in an Instagram post today
Colloid cysts, which are filled with a thick, gel-like substance called colloid, are often asymptomatic and found incidentally during imaging tests.
If symptoms do occur as the tumour grows, they are commonly reported to include headaches that are most severe in the morning upon waking, nausea and blurry vision.
Vertigo and double vision are other key signs.
According to US neurosurgeon, Dr Anthony D’Ambrosio, the growth develops within the third ventricle of the brain.
Ventricles are spaces filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) — a clear, colourless fluid that surrounds and protects the brain and spinal cord.
If large enough, a colloid cyst obstructs the movement of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain.
This results in a build up of CSF in the ventricles of the brain, leading to the condition hydrocephalus, which causes a range of disturbing symptoms including personality changes, visual disturbances and speech problems.
If the blockage becomes severe enough, it can result in a coma.
Colloid cysts, which are filled with a thick, gel-like substance called colloid, are often asymptomatic. Pictured, one case report published in the journal Wiley showing the cyst in the centre of the brain scan (grey circle)
Colloid cysts, which are filled with a thick, gel-like substance called colloid, are often asymptomatic and found incidentally during imaging tests. Pictured with partner Michael Douglas in September
Davina told her Instagram followers this morning: ‘I’m having it removed via a craniotomy through the top of my head here, and through the two halves of my brain, through the middle.’ Pictured with her partner Michael Douglas and daughter Holly Robertson in January
In other cases, it could even result in brain herniation — where the tissue in the skull moves and potentially blocks the flow of blood to the organ.
If the increased intracranial pressure is not treated, sudden death is possible.
Colloid cysts are typically treated via surgery — a craniotomy. This requires removal of part of the bone from the skull to expose the brain.
Where the opening is made on the skull depends on a number of factors, including tumor size.
Davina told her Instagram followers this morning: ‘I’m having it removed via a craniotomy through the top of my head here, and through the two halves of my brain, through the middle.
‘Get the cyst, empty it, take it out, Bob’s your uncle.’
Rather than performing a craniotomy, a neurosurgeon can also treat the colloid cyst using a minimally invasive procedure called endoscopic craniotomy, where a small incision is made just behind the hairline.
In both traditional craniotomy and endoscopic craniotomy, the colloid filling is gently drained from the cyst, and then the cyst wall is closed.
According to Dr Ambrosio, most patients who undergo an endoscopic craniotomy are able to return home within a day or two. A craniotomy requires much longer recovery times.
Davina revealed she had been feeling ‘up and down’ and explained she would be in hospital for at least nine days before coming home.
