Trisha Goddard, best known for hosting the talk show Trisha, has revealed her cancer has returned after previously being diagnosed in 2008 and recovering from the illness.
The 66-year-old has been diagnosed with secondary breast cancer – meaning the disease started in the breast and spread to another part of the body – for which there is treatment but no cure.
In her case, the cancer is in her bones, specifically her right hip, she said in an interview with Hello! magazine.
Goddard was told of the news 19 months ago but has only now opened up about it.
The presenter, who is a familiar face to ITV and Channel 5 viewers on her show, said: “It’s not going to go away.
“And with that knowledge comes grief, and fear. But I must keep enjoying what I have always enjoyed.”
In the interview, the mum of two said that keeping the illness a secret was “becoming a burden” and while she was “nervous” about revealing the cancer’s re-emergence, “it needed to be done”.
‘I can’t hide it any more’
The TV personality shared the revelation on Instagram, where she said “like my new hairstyle – I can’t hide it any more”.
The London-born TV star has been in the media for more than 40 years, and was concerned that if the news spread “people will start seeing me as a frail little thing”.
She added: “I’m a journalist; I don’t want to be ‘the story’. I don’t want to be interviewing someone and for them to say to me: ‘I’m so sorry’.”
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‘Cancer doesn’t differentiate’
Accidental discovery
Her secondary cancer was discovered by accident, after a fall in 2022, and a doctor told her that as well as breaking her femur, Goddard had damaged her right hip “which is full of cancer cells”.
The star was also told she had a tumour, to which her first question was: “Am I going to die?”
Goddard no longer lives in the UK having uprooted to the US in 2010.
One of the reasons for her migration was the “traumatic experience” she suffered after her first diagnosis 16 years ago when she condemned the media for being overly intrusive.
Speaking about how her cancer treatment was affected, she described the press as “vile” – adding: “We had to get security at the hospital, my kids were traumatised.”
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This time around, Goddard was treated with daily radiation for three weeks and chemotherapy over a period of time.
On her shows Trisha mainly dealt with conflict resolution like infidelity, family ties and paternity issues.
