As he prepares to return our screens with a new series of his gardening reality show, popular gardener and broadcaster Dermot O’Neil has spoken of his cancer battle and revealed that six months ago he "thought he’d be dead by now."
Speaking to the RTÉ Guide, O’Neill, who fought stomach cancer for seven months in St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin, admitted: "I remember standing at the hospital door and I had this overwhelming feeling that I may never come out again."
During his treatment he lost all his body hair, his weight dropped by four stone and his waistline shrunk but a brave O’Neill is now back at work and soon to be back on our screens.
A new series of 'Super Gardens' kicks off in May and he is also back as resident expert on the Mooney show.
"I did a lot of thinking, a lot of soul-searching," he says. "I now certainly appreciate things a lot more than I did.
"I’m feeling better, no twinges or pains," he said. "It’s great to be alive."
To read the full interview see this week’s RTÉ Guide.
