GMB presenter announces cancer diagnosis live on air as soap star receiving treatment

Hollyoaks actress Ali Bastian has been diagnosed with stage two breast cancer. During Monday's edition (September 9) of Good Morning Britain, hosted by Ed Balls and Susanna Reid, entertainment correspondent Richard Arnold shared the devastating news on air.

"A long road ahead for the family and we send very much love," Richard said as Susanna agreed. The 42-year-old revealed she was left in "total shock" and is currently undergoing weekly chemotherapy treatments. Furthermore, plans are set for her to have a mastectomy and radiotherapy treatment early next year.

Opening up about her feelings, Ali told OK! Magazine: "It was a total shock. I have mornings when I wake up and I've forgotten... and then suddenly I remember. I'm still trying to process it." The actress, known for her roles in The Bill and Doctors, first noticed something was wrong while breastfeeding her daughter Isabella.

Initially brushed off as potentially a blocked duct by doctors, her continued discomfort led her to seek further examination at a specialist clinic. It was there that tests confirmed the presence of cancer.

Her husband, David O'Mahony, shared the emotional moment of diagnosis: "I was with the kids and Ali stuck her head round the door and said that cancerous cells had turned up in the biopsy," he said.

In a candid recollection, David relayed how his wife delivered the news gently to protect their daughters from worry. He explained: "She said it in the most subtle way so the girls didn't twig. I could see how scared and in shock she was.

"It's so tempting to try and 'positive' your way through news like this but it just hit us like a sledgehammer. I just had a feeling of it being so unfair that Ali had been dealt this hand."

Ali, known for her role as Becca Dean in Channel 4's Hollyoaks from 2001 to 2007, relocated from London to Ireland with her two daughters, Isla and Isabella, and partner David earlier this year. She took to Instagram to share that "major burn out" from life in London and challenges following her second pregnancy were among the reasons for the move.

In May, she spoke enthusiastically about residing in a house "overlooking the ocean on the West Coast of Ireland" before receiving her heartbreaking cancer diagnosis in June. Ali is currently under the care of the Orchid Centre at Cork University Hospital.

She has nothing but praise for all the medical staff she's encountered throughout her journey, although she confesses to feeling "frightened" about what lies ahead. However, she remains optimistic and finds journaling about her experiences therapeutic, along with the advice from the nurses caring for her.

Ali expressed: "I feel like they're treating me like one of their own. It's like I've been scooped up. I've been blown away by the care and kindness every kind word and cup of tea means a lot. We love it here."

Since starting chemotherapy, Ali reveals some of her hair has begun to fall out, but for now, she is trimming it with David's assistance, rather than shaving it off. She also mentioned she prefers not to describe herself as being in a 'battle' with cancer, instead viewing it as a process she needs to "adapt to".

Ali lauded ex-Hollyoaks co-stars Sarah Jayne Dunn, Carley Stenson and Jodi Albert, who's based in Ireland, for their incredible support. Peering into the future with optimism, the Strictly Come Dancing star is keen on making an acting comeback once she's "out of the other side".