Strictly Come Dancing 2025 contestant Alex Kingston revealed that she initially ignored her symptoms, only seeking medical attention after a serious warning made her realize the urgency.
Strictly Come Dancing star Alex Kingston has courageously shared her private battle with womb cancer, which she faced last year. Following her diagnosis, the former ER actress underwent a hysterectomy and a course of radiation therapy.
Speaking publicly for the first time about the ordeal, the 62-year-old explained that she had been experiencing symptoms for some time but initially attributed them to aging. Things took a serious turn last summer when she haemorrhaged during a theatre performance.
She told The Independent: “I had a major operation. I had to have a hysterectomy, I had to go into radiation therapy, and that took up a huge part of my life. I had assumed that the way I was feeling was old age, and I just sort of accepted it. I thought, ‘OK, this is what it’s like to be in my sixties.’ But a lot of how I was feeling was to do with my illness.”
Alex Kingston revealed: “I never went down the cancer road in my head. It was a shock, because I have a very positive outlook on life in general. Even though my body was telling me there was something very seriously wrong, I kept thinking, ‘Oh, I’ve got a bad UTI or fibroids.’”
She explained that she delayed seeking medical attention until her theatre run ended, only to be told that cancer had been found in her fallopian tubes, though it hadn’t spread to her ovaries.
After her hysterectomy and radiation therapy, Alex says she feels healthier than she has in years. She added: “Despite having gone through all of that – and any cancer is really tough to accept, to steel yourself to go through all of the necessary procedures to get back into health – the minute I had the operation, I suddenly felt like myself again. I hadn’t felt like that for years.”
Following her recovery, she joined the cast of BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, describing herself as feeling “like Superwoman.”
Now, Alex is urging others to seek medical advice if they notice unusual symptoms, emphasizing that early detection could be life-saving.
Alex Kingston explained: “Womb cancer is really tricky because it is so sneaky. What I would say is, the body does know – and that was the body saying to me, ‘Help! There’s something really wrong.’ It’s so important to seek advice and have a check-up.”
The NHS lists the main symptoms of womb cancer as:
- Vaginal bleeding or spotting after menopause
- Heavy periods that are unusual for you
- Vaginal bleeding between periods
- Changes in vaginal discharge
Other possible signs include:
- A lump or swelling in the abdomen or pelvis
- Pain in the lower back or pelvis, or pain during sex
- Changes in urinary or bowel habits, either more or less frequent than usual