Susanna Reid said she was encouraged to get a mammogram after Sarah, Duchess of York urged women to undergo the routine screening following her breast cancer diagnosis.
The Good Morning Britain presenter, 52, told viewers on Tuesday about her experience of the procedure, having initially been “resistant”, ignoring the letter reminding her to book an appointment.
It comes after the duchess announced in June that she had undergone an operation after discovering she had an early form of breast cancer following a routine mammogram.
'It wasn't in the least bit painful or uncomfortable.'
Susanna's had her mammogram, have you had yours?@susannareid100 pic.twitter.com/ObNFMOAaq2
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) September 5, 2023
On Tuesday, Reid told co-presenter Ed Balls on the ITV programme: “I’m not sure if this is too much information, I did go for the mammogram.
“Do you remember we were talking about Sarah Ferguson and she had urged everybody to go and do it.
“…(I said I was) really resistant to it and then there was a big a row, wasn’t there, about the fact that some health authorities weren’t sending regular reminders.
“I remembered that there had been a letter somewhere in the in-tray and so I did it.”
When asked if she had found the experience “stressful”, Reid explained how the day had not gone to plan.
She said: “It was slightly stressful because our lovely editor Daniel drove me there and then I left my mobile phone in the car and then I felt stressed because I didn’t have my mobile phone.
“I had to go up to someone else in the waiting room to ask them if I could possibly send an email from their mobile phone … Anyway, the point (was) I was completely distracted.
“… I went in and the nurse was absolutely lovely and it wasn’t in the least bit painful or uncomfortable.”
The TV star said she was putting off the procedure because she was expecting it to be “far, far worse” than it was, and urged others to get checked.
She added: “The results came within a few weeks and I’m all clear.
“(It’s) worth doing, (I) don’t have to worry about it for another couple of years.”
It comes after Sarah, who is the ex-wife of the Duke of York, spoke about her breast cancer diagnosis and eight-hour surgery on her podcast Tea Talks With The Duchess And Sarah, which she said was “in the hope it encourages everyone who can to get screened”.
She also revealed she had named her reconstructed left breast “Derek” following a single mastectomy surgery, and thought of it as her “perky friend” who saved her life.