Alison Hammond has revealed she is worried about her unwell niece, as plans for the next junior doctors’ strike are revealed.
The ITV presenter was discussing the upcoming industrial action on This Morning today. But she said she is concerned it will affect her niece Jasmine, who is being treated for cancer.
Speaking about her worries, Alison said: “My niece is going through cancer and she’s going through some really aggressive chemo.
“Obviously as an auntie, I just want to know if she’s going to be affected by this because, I know they have other doctors on, but I just want to know if she’s going to be alright.”
Junior doctors in the UK are on strike until 7am on July 18 morning. Emergencies will still be dealt with, but routine appointments will be postponed. Senior doctors will fill in to provide emergency care. They will then go on strike themselves on July 20 and 21..
What condition does Alison Hammond’s niece have?
Alison’s niece Jasmine was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease when she was just three years old. In 2011, she collapsed while at school after suffering a heart attack.
Obviously as an auntie, I just want to know if she’s going to be affected by this.
Alison added: “You just worry and there’s millions of other people who are worried too.”
Before the attack, doctors told Alison’s family that Jasmine could need surgery, as she was struggling to walk and experiencing palpitations. She was left with aneurysms on her arteries and couldn’t use her left arm.
Jasmine’s transplant
Speaking to The Mirror in 2011, Alison said: “She was the sickest girl in the UK at that point so she went straight to the top of the list to get a new heart.”
Thankfully, a donor was found just two days later, and Jasmine underwent the transplant at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Alison told the paper: “I cannot tell you how happy the family was then.
“Only days before I had been looking at my sick little niece, on life support, with all these tubes coming out of her, and wondering how to prepare my son, Aiden, for the news that his cousin might not be coming back from hospital.
“Then we got the best present we could hope for.”
Read more: Alison Hammond breaks silence on claims of ‘tension’ with Dermot O’Leary
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