Celebrity Big Brother Star Louis Walsh's Pals Speak Out About His 'rare' Blood Cancer As They Explain His REAL Reason For Taking Part In The Show: 'you Can See How Frail He Is'

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Louis Walsh revealed he was diagnosed with a ‘rare’ form of cancer in 2020, speaking for the first time about the major health hazard during Friday’s episode of Celebrity Big Brother.

The former X Factor star, 71, admitted he had Waldenstrom’s Macroglobulinaemia, a rare type of blood cancer, but has since been given the all-clear after receiving treatment in Dublin during lockdown.

And now friends of the star have opened up about Louis’ illness, explaining it’s the reason he’s been sleeping so much on the ITV reality show.

The star has often been seen sleeping in the Big Brother house, with his friends revealing ‘you can see how frail he is’.

Talking about his health to The mirrorsaid his friends: ‘Louis is in remission at the moment but you can see how frail he is and that he has lost a lot of weight. This is also the reason why he sleeps so much, it all took a lot out of him.’

Friends of Celebrity Big Brother star Louis Walsh have spoken out about his ‘rare’ blood cancer as they explain his REAL reason for joining the reality show

Friends of the star have opened up about Louis’ illness and explained that it is why he has been sleeping so much on the ITV reality show, adding: “you can see how frail he is”

Louis revealed during the episode that the cancer diagnosis came as a ‘shock’ and gave him a ‘reality check’, and his friends explained that it was the driving force behind him joining the Big Brother show.

They continued: ‘The whole experience was the main driving force behind signing up for the show. He had been really ill and just wanted to enjoy life again and thought “what the hell”.’

They added: ‘It’s no wonder he’s decided to immerse himself in the Celebrity Big Brother house. It’s almost like a reaction to what has happened. It was quite an ordeal, not least as the cancer is so rare that it took a while to be diagnosed.’

Louis debated his health with Levi and Ekin-Su on Friday he told the couple that ‘nobody knew he was sick’.

Levi asked how Louis used the corona lockdown, he replied: ‘I was sick and I think nobody knew I was sick. I had cancer. A mild version, a rare one.’

Levi asked, ‘What part? Pancreatic cancer?’

‘In my blood I didn’t even know I had it until I went to the hospital and then they checked me, checked me, checked me, then they found it.

‘They said it was rare and I said (shrugs) away. Gone’, Louis replied.

They explained his real reason for doing the show: ‘The whole experience was the main driving force behind signing up for the show. He had been really sick and just wanted to enjoy life again and thought ‘what the hell” (pictured March 2020)

The music manager admitted that being diagnosed with cancer left him in ‘shock’ and gave him a ‘reality check’.

He continued: ‘It affected me mentally, to be honest with you. (points to his head) it’s just up here, even walking past a hospital makes me almost sick.

‘It’s all gone, I’m fine. It was just the shock of being sick and that word … nobody wants that word.

‘I have it blocked, a reality check, you see so many people sick and it’s horrible.

‘In my world it was about pop music and all that. I didn’t think about anyone getting sick or anything like that. And it was like wow reality check you’re in the real world.’

Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia (also known as lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma) is a rare form of low-grade lymphoma (a type of bone marrow cancer) which in most cases is associated with the presence of an excessive amount of abnormal protein in the blood.

Before entering the house, Louis revealed he had signed up to the ITV show for fun after attending two recent funerals for friends which gave him a reality check about his own mortality.

Louis said: ‘I was sick and I don’t think anyone knew I was sick. I had cancer. A mild version, a rare one in my blood, I didn’t even know I had it until I went to hospital’

The music executive, who said his cancer is now ‘gone’, admitted being diagnosed left him in ‘shock’ and gave him a ‘reality check’ as it really affected him mentally

What is Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia?

Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia is also known as lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma.

It is a rare form of low-grade lymphoma (a type of bone marrow cancer) which in most cases is associated with the presence of an excessive amount of abnormal protein in the blood.
Due to the rarity of the condition, University College London Hospital in the UK has the largest referral practice for this condition
The cancer usually develops over a long period of time, with some people having no symptoms. It can be detected when blood samples are taken for another reason.
Symptoms may be caused by lymphoma cells that build up in the bone marrow. The lymphoma cells take up space, making it difficult for the bone marrow to make enough normal blood cells.
The most common symptoms are: feeling weak and tired (fatigue), looking very pale or feeling short of breath due to a lack of red blood cells (anaemia), repeated infections due to a lack of healthy white blood cells (which help fight infections), bruising or bleeding easily heavy, profuse night sweats weight loss.
Blood Cancer UK can offer advice and support

He told Mirror: ‘I don’t want to be in my last chapter, I want to live. I want to enjoy myself. I will not die. But then it makes sense that you get to this age and think, why not? Life is to short.

‘I’ve lost some people in my life recently and it changes you. I attended two funerals. Yes, it’s definitely a reality check. It makes you think about what life is all about. It makes you rethink what is important and what you care about. Losing friends makes you think about your own mortality.

‘I want to enjoy myself more. I want to see the world. Everywhere. I don’t have a bucket list. I don’t like that word. I just want to see the rest of the world. I just want to enjoy life – live, love and laugh. I don’t want to be older and think if only I had. I won’t do that no. There is no time to regret. I’m happy. I’m honestly happy at the moment and it’s given me an extra push to go and enjoy life even more.’

That will come later viewers were furious when Louis ordered Nikita Kuzmin to ‘stop crying’ in tense scenes on Thursday night.

Louis scolded the Strictly star, 26, during the shocking face-to-face nominations when the latter started crying while voting for the former.

The housemates were ordered to kiss the housemate they nominated – and when a sobbing Nikita approached Louis after saying he was lazy in the house, the seven-year-old spat: ‘Stop crying for God’s sake’.

Nikita – who stated: ‘I don’t think Louis has helped around the house as much as everyone else has, that’s my reason’ before Louis’ spell – has scored legions of fans since entering the house, of which many swarmed Twitter following the moment.

Angry fans wrote: ‘LOUIS TELLING NIKITA TO ‘STOP CRYING FOR GOD’S SAKE’ YOU ARE A BITTER EMOTIONAL OLD LEAVE MY BABY ALONE… @kuzmin__nikita is so pure Louis is disgusting we must protect nikita at all costs!!! .. .’

Blood Cancer UK can offer all advice and support