Edwina Bartholomew's husband's sweet tribute after Sunrise star's cancer diagnosis

Sunrise presenter Edwina Bartholomew shocked viewers on Friday morning when she broke down in tears and revealed she has been diagnosed with cancer. The newsreader shared that it was "a shock to say" but shared that she remained very positive that doctors found it early and that it's treatable with a daily tablet.

Edwina revealed she "had no symptoms" or "warning signs" with the cancer she has, Chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), and doctors only found it because she decided to have a routine health check when she turned 40. Thankfully, the Sunrise star's life expectancy doesn't change, but she wanted to share her story to encourage other mums, in particular, to put themselves first for once and get a health check as it could save their life.

Edwina Bartholomew's husband thanks followers for support

Taking to Instagram, Edwina's husband Neil Varcoe shared a sweet tribute to his wife, writing, "Edwina is the strongest person I know. She'll get through this. We'll get through this. Thanks for your support."

Neil's friends and followers shared messages of support, with Joh Griggs writing, "You are both the strongest people. Sending much love."

Melissa Doyle added, "Sending all of you my love."

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"So sorry that you’re going through this! So brave in sharing it with us all and we’re here for you guys," one user wrote.

"Think about how many people will be saved because through Edwinas example, people will have checks early," another added.

Edwina Bartholomew on her cancer diagnosis: 'Life goes on'

Edwina also took to Instagram to thank everyone for their support, writing, "Thank you. Thank you so much for all the love. This past month has been such a strangely joyous time.

"The day I got back from having my bone marrow biopsy, Tom [Edwina's son] insisted on taking the door snake to the park. It made me laugh so much to accompany him down the street with the damn thing flung over his shoulder," she shared. "It was a lovely reminder that life goes on. I have been ocean swimming, dreaming up plans with @neilwrites and handing out a lot of hugs. Long may that continue xx."

Larry Emdur shares tribute to Edwina Bartholomew

Larry Emdur, host of The Morning Show, shared his own tribute to Edwina on Instagram, sharing a sweet message for his friend and colleague.

"That smile not only lights up your TV’s it lights up the hearts of everyone who works with her," he began. "This cancer diagnosis has come as a horrible shock but her strength and positivity in tackling this has not."

He continued, "[Edwina] is one of the nicest, most loveable and sincerely warmest people I’ve ever met, in or out of the biz. You say you’re going to be ok, we believe you and we’re all here for you, all the way. Sending you so much love."

Former Seven presenter Sally Obermeder commented on the post, writing, "Agree Laz. Her strength and positive nature and the love we all have for her will help her through this."

Edwina Bartholomew shares 'personal news'

"I have some personal news this morning," Edwina started her announcement on Friday morning. "It's not great news, not a panda story to finish the bulletin. I have been diagnosed with cancer. That's a shock to say and hard to say, but it's a really good kind. It's called chronic myeloid leukemia, so it can be treated with a daily tablet. If I take care of myself, I will be completely, absolutely fine. So I feel very, very lucky."

She continued, "I wanted to share this with you for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because everyone at home and here has been here for all the wonderful times, for the engagements and the weddings and the babies, for all of us. So it felt right to share this with you too, and I know many of you have been in similar situations or much, much worse, and come out the other side of it stronger and more resilient. And that's exactly what I plan to do. I thought I could keep it together, and I will."

"Secondly, the reason I'm telling you is because after I turned 40, I made the decision to prioritise my health. I got a skin check after Nat had her scare, I had a mammogram after I had a few lumps, and that came back all clear. I even had an eye check, and that's fine, but my doctor sent me to get some routine blood tests at the same time, and one of those tests came back with some levels out of whack. So please, particularly for mums who always take care of everyone else, please take care of yourself too, and just check in with your doctor."

'Feel really positive'

Through her tears, she added, "Despite appearances, I feel really positive about it. It genuinely is the luckiest, unlucky thing to ever happen to me. I'm just beyond grateful I found it and beyond grateful it's the best-case scenario."

Nat Barr told Edwina that she and the Sunrise team are "really sorry" that she has to go through this, asking the newsreader to explain the treatment.

"We're so lucky, so literally, I can take a daily tablet. My life expectancy doesn't change. I just do need to take care of myself and rest, so we're unbelievably lucky to firstly, have access to that in this country and that that is, you know, the kind that I have. And also I've reacted really well to the medication so far, which is fantastic, and they've had no side effects."

She added, "And I also had no symptoms, which is why I wanted to give that health warning at all. I didn't have anything. I mean, I was tired, but hey, you know, get up at 3am, so no symptoms at all, no warning signs. And that's really common with this kind of kind of cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia. You often don't have symptoms very slow growing. But if I hadn't prioritised my health and had that check, I could be dealing with a really different situation.

"So yeah, I think it's just a lot to wrap your head around, because it sounds like a scary word, but you know, Beretts, for Tour de Cure, you're working in this space all the time," Edwina said, referencing Mark Beretta's work with the cancer research fundraiser "You know, just so many amazing breakthroughs, and just, yeah, everything crossed, and just so incredibly grateful that this is the outcome."

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