Gloria: I can understand why my pal Gerry didn’t go public about his cancer
GLORIA Hunniford has rallied in support of her old UTV colleague Gerry Kelly after he revealed he’d been fighting cancer.
“I’m sending him and his family all my love and support,” said the Loose Women presenter.
She added that she understood why the Co Down broadcaster had kept his illness secret for so long, just as her late daughter Caron Keating had done.
Gloria also backed Gerry’s call on men who had concerns about their health to get themselves checked out by their doctors.
Gerry (69) told Radio Ulster listeners at the weekend that he’d been diagnosed with bladder cancer 18 months ago.
And he said the disease hadn’t come back after surgery and chemotherapy.
Gerry’s wife Helena had insisted he seek medical advice after he noticed he was passing blood while on a golfing holiday in Spain, which he initially thought was a kidney infection.
However, after a scan it was confirmed that Gerry had a tumour, which was successfully removed from his bladder.
The Radio Ulster presenter also underwent chemotherapy sessions before he was given the all-clear.
Gloria (77), who worked with Gerry on UTV’s Good Evening Ulster news magazine programme in the early 1980s, said she was shocked to hear about his illness but encouraged by his recovery.
The Portadown-born star said: “I’m sorry that Gerry has had to go through it but I’m relieved to hear that there has been good news for him.
“I can understand why he didn’t want to talk about the illness and his treatment at the time it was happening.
“He needed to wait until he was ready to speak about it.”
Gloria said her daughter adopted the same approach during her illness. Caron (41) was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997 and died seven years later.
Gloria said Caron fought her battle with cancer in private, away from the public gaze.
The presenter added: “She wanted to cope with it herself and not to have people talking about it all the time to her. She didn’t want to be seen as a victim.
“I totally respected her wishes and told Caron no one would ever hear about her illness from me.
“I have always thought that whatever is wrong with an individual, it is their prerogative to deal with it in their own way.
“So I understand that side of it from Gerry’s perspective too.
“A lot of people want to talk about their illnesses from the very beginning but some people don’t.
“Eventually Caron decided to write about her journey and, by speaking out about his cancer, Gerry clearly wants to do what he can to help other people.” Gloria said she was pleased that Helena had persuaded him to go the doctor.
She added: “It is one of the failings of men that they have this attitude that they’ll be fine and it will all go away and it’ll be grand.
“I think there’s a lot to be said for women telling their menfolk to seek out help and not to hold back.
“As for Gerry, I am delighted that he has come through it all so well and I have nothing but love support and respect for him going forward.”
On Monday Gerry said his cancer was caught quickly and treated, and hadn’t returned.
The former UTV chat show host said he was being monitored on a regular basis.
He also thanked people for their “kind words and good wishes”.
Last year Gerry interviewed his former colleague on the radio as she marked 70 years in showbusiness.
❝ I’m sorry Gerry has had to go through this but I’m relieved at his good news