ITV star’s wife, 30, diagnosed with rare brain tumour after ‘petrifying’ seizure

ITV presenter Dan Salisbury-Jones has shared that his wife has been diagnosed with a rare and incurable brain tumour after suffering a ‘petrifying’ seizure.

The sports correspondent revealed that his wife Liz received the news just after giving birth to their first child Reuben.

Opening up about how the couple had been looking forward to the next chapter of their lives, Dan said: “Life was very good back in 2022. Liz had given birth to our first baby, I’d got this exciting new job in the Midlands, and we had found a house that was to become our family home.”

But Dan worried that he had an “odd sense that all was going too well,” with Liz then sadly suffering a seizure at the end of a family visit to Teesside last December.

He added: “My wife was just looking through me like there was nothing there. I really wish I knew that was normal because at the time I thought the worst,’ he recalled.

"Eventually, she started recognising people and rediscovering her memory as we made our way to the hospital."

A CT scan showed Liz had a mass on her brain, with doctors concerned it could be a tumour. Dan continued: “She was admitted and put on a drip for several days, spending Christmas on a general/diabetic ward at a hospital with no neurological department.”

Liz, 30, was diagnosed with a low-grade Oligodendroglioma, which is a rare and incurable tumour. Luckily, the tumour is slow-growing, but she is likely to suffer more seizures, meaning she isn’t able to look after their son Reuben on her own.

Dan shared his story to thank the Brain Tumour Charity and The Christie Hospital for their support. He opened up about how Liz has now received ‘state-of-the-art proton beam therapy’ as well as chemotherapy to shrink the tumour.

He said: “Liz was 30 at the time and because of her age and relatively good prognosis, her oncologist also requested she gets state-of-the-art proton beam therapy at The Christie in Manchester.

"This was six weeks of daily treatment Monday to Friday. The Christie offered free accommodation in the city centre, but we were able to stay with family. The kindness we’ve found on this journey has been incredible.

"Then it was time for PCV Chemotherapy. We are now midway through the second cycle, and Liz is handling it like a trooper.

“There are some strict dietary requirements, which are quite confusing to start with but not that bad once you get your head around it,’ Dan explained.

Determined to break the ‘taboo’ around cancer by sharing the experience, Dan shared that his love for his job and sports have helped him through.

“The last year of childbirth, brain surgery, and chemotherapy really has driven home how much of a wimp I am compared to Liz. No complaints, she just gets on with it!

"Meanwhile, I expected to find sport more trivial, but actually the opposite has happened. It reminded me of how important it is for so many people and what an escape it is.”

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