The TV star opened up about his devastating well being information.
Jamie East opened up about his leukaemia analysis (Picture: undefined)
A former Large Brother host and Virgin Radio presenter has spoken out about his ‘brutal’ battle towards leukaemia, expressing his hope that future most cancers sufferers will likely be provided higher remedy choices than he was. Jamie East, 52, launched his tv profession in 2011, co-presenting Large Brother’s Bit on the Aspect alongside Emma Willis and Alice Levine, earlier than occurring to entrance Thronecast on Sky Atlantic with Sue Perkins, Most Haunted Stay with Ryal, and Celeb Haunted Resort Stay with Christine Lampard and Matt Richardson. He joined the Virgin Radio UK crew as a presenter on the 10am to 1pm slot in 2016, earlier than later transferring to talkRADIO to host the afternoon present. He now works as a podcaster and journalist, contributing to nationwide initiatives with ITV and DMG.
Jamie, who first made his identify in punk band The Beekeepers, was recognized with continual myeloid leukaemia (CML) in June 2025. He mentioned: “Earlier than my analysis, I used to be truthfully the fittest I might ever been. I used to be going to the health club frequently and had simply run a 10k, however I seen the glands in my neck had been swollen, so I booked a GP appointment.”
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Jamie East rose to fame presenting Large Brother and Virgin Radio (Picture: undefined)
Following blood assessments and a bone marrow biopsy that confirmed his analysis, Jamie was confronted with a tough alternative relating to his remedy, reviews the Mirror.
“My first response was to ask my advisor if I might nonetheless go to Glastonbury in a number of days, I believe I used to be in shock!” mentioned Jamie. “However I used to be given a alternative between imatinib and dasatinib. My advisor defined each would work, however dasatinib can be faster and harsher. I felt extremely susceptible at that time, so I selected the gentler choice.” Whereas initially efficient, Jamie’s remedy required adjustment. “My blood outcomes had been on monitor at first, however then they began to fall out of vary, so I used to be switched to dasatinib. The unwanted effects had been brutal at first, fixed complications and a rash, however they settled after a number of days.
“It is good that sufferers have a alternative, but when I might been instructed from the beginning which remedy was finest for my particular leukaemia, that is what I’d have performed. “
Jamie lately visited a laboratory the place pioneering analysis funded by Leukaemia UK is revealing why folks recognized with CML can reply so in a different way to remedy, opening the door to extra personalised and efficient care. CML is a type of blood most cancers triggered by a genetic abnormality, which drives the uncontrolled manufacturing of irregular white blood cells from stem cells within the bone marrow.
Professor David Vetrie, from the College of Glasgow, mentioned: “My analysis group and I are very grateful to be the recipient of the 2025 Leukaemia UK Venture Grant. We’re working with exceptionally gifted scientists, and the venture has nice potential to assist sufferers. Our analysis is now geared toward creating medication that particularly goal the leukaemic cells in numerous affected person teams, so we are able to enhance the outcomes of as many individuals with CML as doable.”
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