Loose Women’s Coleen Nolan Opens Up About Skin Cancer Diagnosis

Loose Women star Coleen Nolan has opened up about receiving a skin cancer diagnosis.

The daytime TV panellist told viewers of Monday’s show that she underwent treatment for basal cell carcinoma on her shoulder, before being told she has a melanoma on her face.

Coleen – whose sister Bernie died from breast cancer in 2013, before her other sisters Anne and Linda were later diagnosed with the cancer – explained how she had put off getting a red patch of skin on her shoulder checked for a year, explaining that it “wasn’t bothering” her.

It was only when she visited a doctor for a different issue around six months ago that she was told it was a basal cell carcinoma, which the NHS describes as a non-melanoma skin cancer that does not usually spread to other parts of the body.

Coleen has since used topical chemotherapy cream to successfully treat it, which she confirmed means she will not need to have it removed.

“My first instinct, typical me, was to laugh hysterically because I just thought that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard anybody say,” she said of being told the news.

“I’m sick of cancer and I also my first instinct was, I’m not telling anybody in my family because this, that I’ve got at the moment, seems nothing compared to what my sisters have been though.

“And now, what Linda is going through, where it has gone to her brain and she’s having chemo.

“It just seemed so pathetic for some reason to go back and go: ‘Oh yeah, I’ve got a carcinoma’.”

However, Coleen recently had a mark underneath her eye checked out, which doctors confirmed was melanoma skin cancer, which can spread to other areas of the body.

She will now use chemo cream again to treat the area, before a decision is made whether to remove it.

Coleen discussed her diagnosis with Ruth Langsford, Brenda Edwards and Gloria Hunniford on Loose Women
Coleen discussed her diagnosis with Ruth Langsford, Brenda Edwards and Gloria Hunniford on Loose Women

S Meddle/ITV/Shutterstock

While Coleen said she had “not been ill” with either of her skin cancers, she explained she was speaking about it on Loose Women to raise awareness, having previously done this when participating in The Real Full Monty series.

“The one thing we keep putting out is awareness. It’s all about getting checked out, even if it could be nothing,” she said.

“I thought I need to take a leaf out of my own book.”

Coleen’s sister Linda is was told she had incurable secondary breast cancer in her hip in 2017, four years after Bernie’s death from the disease aged 52.

The cancer later spread to Linda’s liver in 2020, before she was told earlier this year that the cancer had spread to her brain.

The Nolan Family – Maureen, father Tommy, Bernie (back) and Linda, Anne and Coleen
The Nolan Family – Maureen, father Tommy, Bernie (back) and Linda, Anne and Coleen

Manchester Daily Express via Getty Images

The siblings’ sister Anne successfully underwent treatment for stage three breast cancer following her diagnosis in 2020, having previously undergone treatment for the disease 20 years prior.

Coleen shortly after Anne and Linda’s 2020 diagnosis, Coleen said she was considering an elective double mastectomy operation to minimise her own chances of developing the disease.

Loose Women airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV1.

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Loose Women Deny Latest Reports Of Supposed Behind-The-Scenes Drama

Loose Women bosses have denied fresh rumours of alleged behind-the-scenes tension among some of the show’s panellists.

A report published in the Mail On Sunday claimed that Nadia Sawalha was refusing to appear on the panel alongside Coleen Nolan, due to derogatory comments allegedly made by Coleen’s agent about Nadia on Twitter last year.

The article also alleged that Stacey Solomon had requested she no longer appear on the show with Coleen, when the former I’m A Celebrity winner returns from maternity leave later this year.

However, a representative for the ITV daytime show has dismissed the rumours outright, claiming that members of the Loose Women panel don’t actually have any say in who they share the episode with.

Nadia Sawalha was one of Loose Women's original presenters when it launched in 1999
Nadia Sawalha was one of Loose Women’s original presenters when it launched in 1999

Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock

A spokesperson told HuffPost UK the Mail’s “story is untrue”, adding: “Panellists are chosen for each show by the Loose Women Editor and senior production team, not the panellists themselves.

Coleen also denied the reports on her official Twitter page, stating that “nothing printed in the Mail article today is true”.

She added that she was “taking legal advice” on the matter, and would be also be addressing it on Loose Women in the days to come.

The former Celebrity Big Brother winner’s publicist also denied the reports, telling HuffPost UK they were “100% untrue”.

Coleen also received a message of support from her fellow Loose Women panellists Janet-Street Porter:

Nadia Sawalha’s spokesperson had no comment when approached by HuffPost UK.

Stacey Solomon is currently on maternity leave from her role as a Loose Women presenter
Stacey Solomon is currently on maternity leave from her role as a Loose Women presenter

Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock

Coleen first joined Loose Women in 2000, staying with the show on-and-off for 11 years before deciding to take a break.

She later returned as a full-time member of the panel in 2013.

Towards the end of last year, Coleen spoke out about how the show had changed since she first joined, admitting she felt it had become less “free” in recent times.

“It’s a very different show, because the world has changed – and I have to say [it’s changed] for the better in a lot of respects,” she said. “You cannot get away with certain things now. However, it was a much easier show to do in those days.”

Nadia is also among Loose Women’s longest-serving stars, and was among its original presenters when it launched in 1999.

She stepped down in 2002, but eventually returned in 2013, around the same time as Coleen.

Meanwhile, Stacey became a permanent Loose Women panellist in 2016, after a string of guest appearances went down a storm with viewers.

She has been credited with bringing a fresh energy to the show, alongside more recent additions like comedian Judi Love and news anchor Charlene White.

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Loose Women’s Coleen Nolan Admits Show Has Become Less ‘Free’ Over The Years

Long-serving Loose Women presenter Coleen Nolan has opened up about how she feels the show has become less “free” over the years.

Coleen joined the ITV daytime show more than 20 years ago, and in that time has become one of its staple panellists.

In a new interview with the podcast Secure The Insecure, the former Celebrity Big Brother winner reflected on how Loose Women has had to adapt over the years as the “world has changed”.

“It was free,” Coleen recalled of her early days on Loose Women. “It’s not free now. It’s a very different show, because the world has changed – and I have to say [it’s changed] for the better in a lot of respects. You cannot get away with certain things now.

“However, it was a much easier show to do in those days.”

Jackie Brambles, Coleen Nolan, Carol McGiffin and Jane McDonald on Loose Women back in 2008
Jackie Brambles, Coleen Nolan, Carol McGiffin and Jane McDonald on Loose Women back in 2008

ITV/Shutterstock

She continued: “Everything we discuss in the [pre-show] meetings, all our opinions and all of that – they all have to go up to legal to be looked over, to make sure that we’re hopefully not going to offend.

“You very much self-edit on that show now, and that’s because of social media as well.”

Coleen added that she often finds herself holding back her “genuine” opinions due to concerns about a backlash, which she said is a “shame”.

“I would like to think we can all have opinions and that doesn’t warrant somebody being nasty to you just because they don’t agree,” Coleen added, noting: “But that’s the world we live in now.”

Coleen and her Loose Women co-stars at the NTAs in 2019
Coleen and her Loose Women co-stars at the NTAs in 2019

David M. Benett via Getty Images

During her time on Loose Women, Coleen has come under fire on several occasions.

Back in 2007, she sparked controversy when she claimed she was not in favour of same-sex couples adopting children, and eight years later made headlines when she defended a bakery that had been found guilty of discrimination for refusing to make a cake with a message in support of marriage equality.

“What about if somebody walked in and said I want a cake and I want the whole Islamic State on it and how I support it and how I support them killing our people?” Coleen questioned. “Because it’s a business, do they have to make it?”

However, her biggest Loose Women controversy came in 2018, when she clashed with her former Celebrity Big Brother housemate Kim Woodburn during a segment that was intended for them to put their differences behind them.

The incident sparked thousands of complaints to Ofcom, with Coleen taking an extended break from Loose Women at the time due to a barrage of online abuse.

Listen to her full interview on Secure The Insecure. Loose Women airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV.

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