Tears, Tumours, and a Second Chance: Countryfile Star’s Wife Survives Deadly Cancer After Major Surgery. After a terrifying diagnosis and major surgery, Adam Henson’s wife Charlie is now healthy
Adam Henson has opened up about the most harrowing chapter of his life — when his beloved wife Charlie was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
The Countryfile presenter, 58, revealed that their nightmare began over Christmas 2020 when Charlie started feeling unwell. By February 2021, doctors found a 4.5cm tumour on her pancreas and delivered the terrifying news.
“It was one of the scariest moments of our lives,” Adam admitted. “Pancreatic cancer often comes with a grim prognosis.”
But amid the fear came a small glimmer of hope. Charlie was diagnosed with a rare form of the disease — neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer — and her case was deemed treatable. She underwent the Whipple procedure, a complex and risky operation that removed part of her pancreas. Since then, she’s been on a strict long-term treatment plan involving biannual scans, enzyme capsules, blood thinners, and iron supplements.
Adam said the family “went through the mill” but ultimately emerged “stronger.” He and Charlie, now husband and wife, have chosen to embrace life differently.
“Everything changed after that diagnosis,” Adam reflected. “We made a point of spending more time together, saying yes to things, and focusing on what really matters.”
Charlie also contributed a moving extract to Adam’s 2023 book Christmas on the Farm, describing the emotional and physical toll of her treatment — from battling digestion issues to facing the anxiety of regular scans. “The fear builds months in advance,” she wrote. “But when you get a clear result, it’s like being handed six months of life you thought you’d lost.”
Gratefully, Charlie is now stable and not diabetic — a common complication after her surgery. But her words serve as a reminder of how fragile life can be. Adam summed it up simply: “It’s a cliché, but your health really is everything.”
About the pancreas
The pancreas is an oblong organ located behind the lower part of the stomach, between the stomach and the spine. It produces juices that aid in digestion and makes insulin and other hormones that help the body absorb sugar and control blood sugar.
The pancreas mainly contains two kinds of cells:
Exocrine cells, which make and release enzymes that aid in food digestion.
Endocrine cells, which produce and release important hormones directly into the bloodstream.
The majority of pancreatic cancers start in the exocrine cells that line the ducts of the pancreas. These are called pancreatic adenocarcinomas.
When cancer begins in pancreatic endocrine cells, it’s called a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor (NET). There are many subtypes of this type of tumor.
This summary is about exocrine pancreatic cancer. Further mention of pancreatic cancer refers only to pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and not pancreatic NETs.
Pancreatic cancer risk factors
Anything that increases your chance of developing pancreatic cancer is a risk factor. Some risk factors can be changed, while others cannot.
Risk factors that can be changed include:
Smoking and tobacco use: People who smoke are about twice as likely to develop pancreatic cancer.
Obesity: Being very overweight (having an elevated body mass index, or BMI) increases your chance of developing pancreatic cancer by 20%.
Other pancreatic cancer risk factors can’t be changed, including:
- Age: The risk of pancreatic cancer increases sharply after 55 years old.
- Race: African-Americans are more likely to have pancreatic cancer than other ethnic groups.
- Family history: Hereditary genetic changes may account for about 10% of pancreatic cancers. Examples of genetic syndromes that can cause exocrine pancreatic cancer include: Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome caused by mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, Lynch syndrome (usually defects in MLH1 or MSH 2 genes), and hereditary pancreatitis due to mutations in PRSSI gene.
- Diabetes: People with long-standing history of type 2 diabetes have an increased likelihood of developing pancreatic cancer.
- Chronic pancreatitis: Long-term inflammation of the pancreas is linked with increased pancreatic cancer risk, especially in smokers.
Not everyone with the above risk factors gets pancreatic cancer. However, if you have risk factors, you should discuss them with your doctor.