Coleen Nolan gives emotional update on brother's tragic cancer battle

Loose Women's Coleen Nolan has opened up about dealing with cancer within her family, after the cruel disease affected several of her loved ones, including her three sisters Anne, Linda and Bernie. The ITV star spoke about her brother Brian, 70, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer just three days after Linda's death in January, but was relieved to reveal good news.

Coleen shared that Brian had been given the all-clear after a successful surgery for the cancer. In her weekly newsletter for the Mirror, the 60-year-old praised her big brother and gushed that he "rocks," adding: "I'm so proud of him because, since being diagnosed, he's done so much to raise awareness of the condition. "Brian, I'm in awe of you and so impressed that you can go on live telly and talk so calmly and eloquently about this important subject," she added.

This comes after the 70-year-old joined his sister on Loose Women and gave fans an update about the operation he underwent.

He explained: "There have been developments. I'll start at the beginning. So I had the operation, it's called a RALP, which means it's a robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy.

"To make a long story short, my cancer was in the prostate gland, so they offered me a radical operation, which drew the whole cancer out

"I was basically in the hospital for 18 hours, and I got the all clear last Tuesday that the cancer is completely gone and my bloods are back to normal," Brian concluded.

During his TV appearance, the TV producer also encouraged men to ask their GP for a simple PSA blood test to assess their risk for the disease.

According to the NHS, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. However, there is yet to be a nationwide screening programme similar to breast and cervical cancer, which is something Brian has been campaigning for.

His own diagnosis came after a urinary problem, which he decided to get checked out as it was affecting his quality of life and his sleep.

However, Brian kept the cancer hidden from his family as they were grieving the loss of their sister Linda, who died after a 20-year battle with the disease.

The actor who celebrated his 70th birthday in June, now "has so much to look forward to" due to the early detection, including spending precious time with his grandson.