Comedy legend Bobby Davro has revealed he is battling prostate cancer three years after the tragic death of his fiancée Vicky Wright and two years after his stroke.
The 67-year-old appeared on This Morning on Tuesday and explained that no prior symptoms, a close friend advised him to get a PSA test which led to his diagnosis.
Ben Shephard asked Bobby how he learned he had prostate cancer as he sat alongside doctor Zoe Williams.
‘I think one in eight men get it,’ he said.
‘Coming in today, the man that picked me up in the car from Waterloo – he had it. I think a lot of men of colour, they get more prostate cancer, so it’s got to be checked.
‘Get your PSA checked and have your prostate examined. My doctor told me mine was a bit swollen so I had the PSA test and it was 24, which wasn’t good at all.
Comedy legend Bobby Davro, 67, revealed he is battling prostate cancer three years after the tragic death of his fiancée Vicky Wright and spoke about his diganosis on This Morning on Tuesday
‘The NHS have been fantastic and a couple of days later, they gave me a biopsy to check out where it is and it was intermediate.
‘I asked the urologist if it’s terminal, because that’s the first thing you think of and he said no, I will be buying Christmas presents for many years to come. That made me cry because it was such a relief.’
A PSA test is a routine blood test that measures the level of PSA, a protein produced by the prostate gland.
Cat Deeley asked Bobby if he had any symptoms before the diagnosis.
‘Not really,’ he said. ‘The only thing I had was erectile dysfunction. I can say that can’t I? it wasn’t nice and it might have had something to do with the woman I…’ he joked.
‘I tried taking the blue pills, if you know what I mean, [viagra].’
He joked: ‘I used to take one every night when I was in bed. Not to have sex. It stops me rolling out the bed… Sorry, I’ve got to put a few gags in. Anyway, I realised that something wasn’t quite right.
‘I was struggling a bit in that department.’
Ben said to Dr Zoe, ‘the good news is, he’s got this diagnosis but Bobby is still very much Bobby. As he says, “you’ve got to laugh to live”.’ But let’s wind back to the test that was the first indicator that something was going on.’
Zoe said: ‘There are two groups of people. Those who have symptoms.. and often prostate cancer doesn’t have any symptoms… especially in the early stages, but erectile dysfunction can be a symptom.
‘More common symptoms are difficulty passing urine, because the prostate gland if it grows, which it can do with cancer, but it grows more commonly with non cancer causes, it can push on the tube that the urine goes through.
‘So difficulty getting started, poor flow, difficulty ending, so dribbling, or feeling like your bladder is not fully empty can all be symptoms but often, there are no symptoms.’
She continued: ‘But, if someone has symtoms, that is not screening. that is, you go, you have a PSA, you don’t have to have a prostate examination if you don’t want to. lot of men are put off by that. You can have a blood test.’
It’s been a tough few years for Bobby. His fiancée Vicky tragically passed away in May 2023 after battling pancreatic cancer (pictured together in 2010)
The comedian was left devastated when his partner – the daughter of legendary late England captain Billy Wright and Beverley Sisters singer Joy Beverley – passed away on May 4, 2023
Zoe confirmed that one in eight men will get prostate cancer, one in four black men, so we need a screening programme in place yet because we don’t have the right tests.
She said: ‘The issue with PSA is that there are a lot of false negatives for people who don’t have prostate cancer. Anything that causes a prostate to grow, including benign causes, will all raise a PSA.
‘Most people who have a raised PSA, don’t have prostate cancer but that causes worry. You can also have quite advanced prostate cancer and have a normal PSA, so it can also give false reassurance.
‘Lots of people can have prostate cancer and it wouldn’t harm them. A lot of men die with it, not from it.’
On Sunday, Bobby first told The Andrew Eborn Show that he takes a tablet every day following his stroke and joked: ‘the doctor has given me one to take every day for the rest of my life and he’s only given me six tablets.
‘Laughter is the best medicine’ he said. ‘Unless you’ve got erectile dysfunction and that’s just cruel isn’t it.
The Daily Mail is campaigning to end needless prostate deaths and backing prostate cancer screening for men at high risk of the disease
‘I’ve got something else wrong with me and this will be an exclusive.
‘I’ve got prostate cancer. I was diagnosed and it’s sh**y. I’ve had it twice now but I think it’s going to be OK.
‘It’s sort of midrange and I’ve got all the injections and stuff and I’ve got the tablets and it’s not a nice thing to have to have.
It’s been a tough few years for Bobby. His fiancée Vicky tragically passed away in May 2023 after battling pancreatic cancer.
He said at the time: ‘It’s been just over a week since my beautiful @vickywright5459 left this world and its only now I feel strong enough to share my feelings.
‘I want to thank everyone for their support and expressions of love and kindness you have shown me and Vicky’s family and loved ones…
‘To think we will never hear her voice to hear laughter look into her beautiful eyes see her smile to hold her and to kiss her is devastating and so incredibly painful.
‘She will be in my thoughts and in my heart forever. She was my Schluffe and I loved her and always will.’
Bobby then shared a stunning photo of Vicky and wrote: ‘I will miss you so very much and I will love you forever. RIP my beautiful Schluffe. No more pain darling. No more pain.’
Bobby went back to work gigging just one day after Vicky died – as he vowed to perform through the pain so not to disappoint his fans who had bought tickets to the show.
Then in early 2024, Bobby suffered a stroke after collapsing moments after a sold-out gig at the Coulsdon Comedy Club in South London.
Bobby had just come off stage following a standing ovation at the sell-out gig before he suffered what he has described as a ‘funny turn’.
Read the full article here
