Linda Nolan is once again battling cancer. Her younger sister Coleen Nolan announced the sad news during Monday's episode of Loose Women, as she explained her recent absence from the show. "This is so hard. It's difficult to know where to start," Coleen told viewers. "They found secondary cancer in Linda." Linda, 58, was previously diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006, but had been cancer-free for the past six years. Coleen explained that the diagnosis came three weeks ago, when Linda fell over on the stairs and was taken to hospital for a scan after breaking her hip. "They found a cyst attached to where the break was and it was earth-shattering for us initially," she revealed.
© Photo: RexColeen Nolan has revealed sister Linda Nolan's cancer has returned
Coleen revealed that Linda had initally wanted to keep the news private as she came to terms with the diagnosis, but said that "with her blessing, she wanted me to talk about it today". She added: "The positive thing is, although they've said it's not curable, it is treatable and it hasn't spread anywhere else. So that's the positive attitude she wants me to get across. Obviously it's going to be compared to [sister] Bernie, and Bernie died of cancer. But Linda wants me to get across she's not dying of cancer, she's living with cancer. She could have years, so we have to focus on that. Bernie's had spread, Linda's hasn’t. Like Bernie, Linda's so strong and she's being really positive. She's had her down days, don't get me wrong. But she's being really positive."
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© Photo: RexColeen pictured with Bernie Nolan, who passed away in July 2013
The news comes less than four years after the death of Coleen and Linda's sister Bernie Nolan. She was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2010, but that October announced she was cancer-free having undergone chemotherapy and a mastectomy. However, at the end of October 2012, the star confirmed that the cancer had returned and was inoperable. Bernie passed away in her sleep on 4 July 2013 aged 52.
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