Edwina Bartholomew has shared the reason she has kept her cancer diagnosis a secret from her children.
The Sunrise star revealed that she had been diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) - a type of blood and bone marrow cancer - live on air in September.
The 41-year-old told Stellar Magazine this weekend that she feels her kids Molly, four, and Tom, two, who she shares with husband Neil Varcoe, are simply too young to understand.
'My kids are two and four, I never had to have the conversation with them, which is such a huge relief. For them, there's no physical difference' she says.
Edwina broke the news to her parents earlier this year and says her father's emotional response broke her heart.
'Watching Dad find out was probably harder than watching Mum, because I think dads are often quite stoic, aren't they? It was really emotional' she said.
'I was able to explain to Mum and Dad straight up the nuts and bolts and the practicalities of it, what would happen and the treatment - and that I had to have a biopsy to confirm it.'
'And they're fairly pragmatic people. It was a really emotional discussion but also they could see that it wasn't the end of the world and I was going to be okay'.
Edwina was first diagnosed in July and has since cut down on her work with the popular Channel Seven breakfast program to focus on her health.
She has mostly remained out of the spotlight in recent months but has now given an update on her health and revealed whether she will be returning to her full-time TV work.
Speaking to Stellar's Something To Talk About podcast, Edwina said she still finds it a 'shock' to say she has leukaemia after months of processing the difficult diagnosis.
She said she feels extremely lucky because they caught the cancer early as she reassured her fans that she is doing 'really well' and has had 'fantastic' test results so far.
Edwina said the diagnosis prompted her to start taking care of her health by cutting out gluten, coffee, alcohol, sugar from her diet while taking up more exercise. She admitted this made her rethink waking up at 3am for hosting Sunrise.
Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia Information
CML is an uncommon type of cancer affecting blood cells produced in bone marrow. According to Mayo Clinic:
- CML progresses slowly across three phases: chronic (most common), accelerated & blast (rarest).
- Treatment primarily involves drugs like tyrosine kinase inhibitors blocking enzymes promoting cell growth/proliferation.
These advances significantly improve prognosis allowing many patients achieving remission living long lives following therapy initiation despite initial shock faced upon receiving diagnoses!