Adele Roberts reveals the gruelling side effects of her chemotherapy as she admits her treatment for bowel cancer ‘removed her fingerprints’

Adele Roberts has opened up on the gruelling side effects of her chemotherapy as she revealed the treatment removed her finger tips.

The TV and radio personality, 45  was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2021 and is currently in remission. 

But her journey fighting the condition left the DJ with some unexpected side effects as she revealed to Monday Mile Podcast that the treatment also caused black spot on her tongue. 

Adele told the show: ‘Chemotherapy is different with every single person. And with me, it really affected my skin.

‘So it took my fingerprints off. I couldn’t use my fingers, I couldn’t use touch screens, I couldn’t use my phone, self-checkouts, things like that.

‘It really damaged the bottom of my feet – it looked like they’d been burnt or something like that. It also turned my tongue black.

Adele Roberts has opened up on the gruelling side effects of her chemotherapy as she revealed the treatment removed her finger tips

The TV and radio personality, 45 was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2021 and is currently in remission

‘I had these black spots on my tongue. So instead of being pink, like an intestine, she was like dark purple and it was almost like treacle would come out of it.

‘It was a lot, it was a mess. I used to think if the chemo is doing this to me, imagine what it’s doing to the cancer. And I made sure that I stayed active all the way through my chemo.

‘And I just used to visualise all of the chemotherapy going through my body and killing any cancer cells. And it was like a way for me to stay strong mentally. Movement and visualisation, that’s what I did.’  

Adele was first diagnosed with bowel cancer in October 2021 and documented her treatment on social media, which included colostomy surgery to remove a bowel tumour and having a stoma bag fitted. 

Nine months after being diagnosed, and after receiving chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment, Adele was declared cancer free, and now lives with a stoma bag, which she has named Audrey. 

The Dancing On Ice star previously  disclosed that she felt ‘accountable’ for her cancer scare and felt ‘she was being punished for something’. 

She said: ‘I totally thought that I had caused it [the cancer]. My first thought was ‘Am I going to die?’. But once he [the doctor] said he could help me, it’s all I held onto.

‘And when he said it wasn’t my fault that’s when I just cried and got so emotional.’

But her journey fighting the condition left the DJ with some unexpected side effects as she revealed to Monday Mile Podcast that the treatment also caused black spot on her tongue

After starting chemotherapy, Adele detailed the treatment’s early side-effects which by December 2021 included a metallic taste in her mouth, swollen fingers and sore teeth.

Speaking about how she coped with the mental and physical struggle of chemotherapy, Adele said there was some nights she would ask herself ‘Why me?”

She added: ‘There were a couple of nights where I was in so much pain and I though why me? There were a few times I’d thought what have I done? Why’s it happening?

‘It felt like I was being punished for something. But then I realised it was all part of me getting better. It [cancer] definitely got me a couple of nights.’

Adele candidly admitted that her cancer diagnosis and having a stoma fitted has helped her have a better relationship with her body.

She said: ‘Most of my life I didn’t cry. I remember Kate [Adele’s girlfriend] saying when I had my tumor removed ‘That the light was back in my eyes’.

‘And I really believe that tumor being taken away took away so much negativity and so much self hatred and I’m so glad that piece of me is gone now because now I’m allowing myself to be the person I should have always been.

‘And crying is part of that, it’s not a weakness it’s a strength. I wouldn’t wish cancer on anyone but it’s given me that [strength].

‘I’m not only grateful for having a stoma to save my life but also it helped me have a better relationship with my body.’

She added: ‘I just didn’t like myself when I was younger and having a stoma it meant I could look at it like the most amazing thing I had which kept me alive. The moment I got it I was like I’ve been foolish for so many years.

‘When I first saw my stoma it was almost like I could see myself for the first time in my life. It was emotional and I thought I’m complete.

‘It’ll be the loss of my stoma when it goes back to the way it was. My scare will be a reminder of what has happened and where I’ve come.’

What is a stoma?  

A stoma is a surgically-created opening made on the abdomen, which is made to divert the flow of urine and faeces.

According to the NHS, this procedure may be needed if you cannot pass stools through your anus, which could be the result of an illness, injury or problem with your digestive system. 

In the UK, it is estimated that one in 335 people have had the surgery. 

The procedure can be part treatment for a number of illnesses, including cancer, diverticulitis, Crohn’s disease or any trauma to the abdomen.

The stoma will generally be ‘pink and most – like the inside of our mouths’. After the surgery, it will be swollen, but this will reduce in six to eight weeks.

There is no sensation to touching a stoma – as there are no nerves – but different people will have theirs in a different size or shape. 

It is also possible to have a temporary stoma, which could later be reversed, if the diseased or damaged area in the bowel needs to heal over time. 

A stoma is a surgically-created opening made on the abdomen, which is made to divert the flow of urine and faeces. Stock image used

TYPES OF STOMA

COLOSTOMY

This refers to an opening in the colon – the large intestine. During the operation, a part of the colon will be brought from inside the body through their abdomen. The output from this ‘often resembles a traditional stool’ and functions around one to three times a day.

ILEOSTOMY

For this procedure, the surgeon will bring a part of the small intestine – the ileum specifically – from inside the patient’s body and bring it through the abdomen, stitching it down to secure it. The output for an ileostomy is looser than that of a colostomy. An ileostomy bag – which enables drainage into the toilet between three to six times a day’ – is also worn.

UROSTOMY

A urostomy refers to an opening for a person’s urine specifically. For this, the surgeon will take a piece of someone’s small intestine and attach it to the ureters. This will ‘form a passageway for urine to pass through’. For this, one of the tube is brought out through the abdomen. A urostomy bag will also have a ‘bung or tap on the bottom to allow urine to be drained at regular intervals into the toilet’.

Source: Colostomy UK, NHS