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January 15, 2018

BBC newsreader George Alagiah prepares for treatment after cancer returns

By Arun Kakar

BBC News at Six presenter George Alagiah has been told that his cancer has returned, with the journalist set to undergo further treatment to fight the disease.

The 62-year-old father of two is the BBC’s highest paid Black and Minority Ethnic journalist. He was first diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2014.

Alagiah received chemotherapy and several rounds of operations after MRI scans detected eight tumours in his liver. He was given the all-clear in 2015 and returned to work in November of that year.

He is currently in discussions with doctors about treatment options, according to his agent.

“Always knew cancer could come back but still tough dealing with disappointment,” Alagiah said on Twitter. “I know what I have to do: stay calm, stay content, stay fit and let doctors do their best.”

Alagiah was born in Sri Lanka and joined the BBC in 1989 as a foreign correspondent. He moved to presenting the News at Six in 2007, and was revealed last year as the 25th highest earner at the corporation.

A BBC spokesperson said: “Everyone at the BBC sends George and his family their best wishes as he undergoes treatment and we will be thinking of them.”

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