Dame Esther Rantzen stage 4 cancer diagnosis: TV presenter shares how long she has left to live

Dame Esther Rantzen has revealed she asked her doctor for life expectancy after being diagnosed with lung cancer. The TV star confirmed her diagnosis in January and was undergoing various tests to find the ‘best treatment’.

The 83-year-old said she revealed her diagnosis because she didn’t like ‘skulking around various hospitals wearing an unconvincing disguise’. In May, Dame Esther gave a health update, saying she had been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.

In the same month, she was also set to appear on The One Show to mark 50 years since consumer affairs programme That’s Life first aired - a show she hosted for 21 years from 1973 until 1994. She was forced to miss her appearance due to ill health.

The interview was postponed until Friday’s (June 30) instalment of the show, which saw Alex Jones speak to the TV star at her home.

Alex asked the broadcasting legend ‘where she was now’ with her diagnosis, adding that her fans ‘would want to know.’ Dame Esther replied: “I want to know. I did say to my oncologist, “When am I going to die?” And he said, “Sometime in the next 10 years. But how soon, how late I do not know.”

“It does concentrate your mind to be told you’ve got to stage 4 lung cancer. You do think, ‘Well, wait a minute. I’ve got less time than maybe I had assumed’ so you prioritise”.