TV presenter Davina McCall has opened up about her initial reluctance to take a health check that ultimately led to the discovery of a rare brain tumour

Davina McCall said she was initially hesitant to undergo the health screening that eventually detected a rare brain tumour. The TV star found she had a rare 14-mm colloid cyst, which affects only three in every million people, during a chance medical check-up.

Thankfully, the tumour was benign and Davina had neurosurgeon Kevin O’Neill successfully remove it last November. But speaking on BBC Woman’s Hour, she revealed her original reluctance to face personal health concerns.

“I don’t need a health check, I’m Davina,” she said last week, reflecting on her view before the ordeal. According to the Mirror, she continued: “I’m healthy, I’m fitness lady, that’s what I’m known for. I felt fantastic, I felt the best I’ve felt in year.”

The check-up, which she received as a gift after delivering a menopause talk, featured a Dexter scan and a mole mapping. Despite her hesitation, Davina eventually chose to take the plunge and proceed with it after years of using tanning beds.

“I thought, ‘Oh, well that would be quite useful,’” she recalled. “I was sunbed queen in the 80s… I’m ashamed of that. So I had the health check, and what had flagged up is I heard the word benign.”

Davina stressed the dangers of so-called ‘benign’ brain tumours as she delivered a serious warning to listeners. According to the publication, she continued: “I just want to say to anybody listening, that knows anyone with a benign brain tumour, benign does not mean fine.

“That’s a really important thing to say because benign cysts can be devastating. They can be inoperable, they can kill you. Just because it’s not cancerous doesn’t mean it’s not deadly.”