Denise Robertson: This Morning agony aunt diagnosed with cancer

Robertson has given This Morning viewers advice for 30 years

Denise Robertson, an agony aunt on This Morning, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Robertson, 83, has not been seen on the daytime chat show in the last few weeks. She said on Friday: “I'm sorry I've not been around for a couple of weeks but a persistent health issue has turned into something quite a lot bigger.

“I've been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It has come as a surprise to me and my family but we know that many others have suffered and dealt with this condition and I don't plan to give up without a fight.”

She is due to start a course of chemotherapy.

The news was confirmed by This Morning presenter Ruth Langsford, who told viewers: “Some news about one of our own that has all of us at This Morning in a state of shock.

“After almost 30 years of providing comfort to millions of This Morning viewers, agony aunt Denise Robertson is in need of a lot of love herself today.”

Alex Ford, chief executive of Pancreatic Cancer UK, said: “We are enormously sad to hear of Denise Robertson's recent diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, but we must thank her for speaking out about a disease which still has a relatively low profile, despite the fact one person is diagnosed with it every hour.

“It can make a huge difference when someone like Denise gets people talking about the disease, and we hope her openness will encourage people to find out more about the symptoms.

“We wish Denise all the best with her treatment and our specialist nurses are here for her and her family.”

Additional reporting by the Associated Press