Dame Esther Rantzen has wondered if asbestos in an old BBC building caused her to develop stage four lung cancer.
The former That’s Life! presenter, 83, worked for decades at the broadcaster’s Lime Grove Studios, one of the facilities where BBC staff were reportedly exposed to the deadly mineral.
Dame Esther was diagnosed with lung cancer in January. Her doctors reportedly determined that smoking was not a possible cause of her illness, but have not ruled out exposure to asbestos or pollution.
She told The Mirror she “sometimes wonders” if her cancer was caused by “all the asbestos in the BBC building where I worked for decades.” She also wonders if London’s pollution contributed to her illness.
Over the past decade, the BBC has paid £1.64 million in compensation to families of 11 former staff who died of cancer after working in the asbestos-riddled buildings.
Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured last year) has questioned whether asbestos in the old BBC buildings caused her stage four lung cancer
Dame Esther worked for decades at the broadcaster’s Lime Grove studios, one of the facilities where BBC staff were reportedly exposed to the deadly mineral
Dame Esther (centre with Audrey Eyton and Fern Britton) said she ‘sometimes wonders’ if her cancer was caused by ‘all the asbestos in the BBC building where I worked for decades’
Dame Esther said that despite her diagnosis, she “makes the most of every day” by spending a lot of time in her garden.
The former Hearts of Gold presenter told the newspaper that she was “enjoying the fresh air, the birds and the summer flowers” but was also reflecting on her life.
She said: “(I) sometimes wonder if my particular form of lung cancer was caused by all the asbestos in the BBC building where I worked for decades – or by the air pollution I walked and drove through during my many years as a Londoner. ‘
Dame Esther added that ‘when I was in my 80s I knew I had to die of something’.
The BBC is said to have operated 18 facilities with asbestos problems, including Lime Grove in west London and the nearby Television Centre, the company’s former headquarters.
Sources familiar with the situation claimed there was ‘a lot of asbestos in Lime Grove’, including in the cafeteria.
The Lime Grove studios were demolished in 1993, two years after the broadcaster stopped using the facility. The government banned the use of asbestos insulation in buildings in 1999.
The BBC later paid out settlements to the families of 11 former employees who died of mesothelioma. a deadly form of lung cancer develops in the lining that covers the outer surface of some organs of the body.
Mesothelioma is usually associated with asbestos exposure, but it can take more than 20 years for symptoms to appear.
It is not clear what kind of lung cancer Dame Esther has.
The BBC is said to have operated 18 facilities with asbestos problems, including Lime Grove (pictured in September 1988) in west London and the nearby Television Centre, the company’s former headquarters.
The BBC told the Mirror: ‘The health and safety of BBC staff and anyone using BBC buildings is a primary concern and the BBC manages asbestos in accordance with all regulations and legal requirements.’
MailOnline has approached the BBC for comment.
Dame Esther revealed she was suffering from the disease in January this year and has since said it has spread.
Her close friend, TV presenter Angela Rippon, said earlier this month that Dame Esther remains optimistic despite the advanced stage of her illness.
Angela told The Mirror in early July: ‘She’s dealing with it the way Esther would. She is happy. The last time we had a long talk, she was very happy in her country house with her family around her.
And she’s happy there now. She has family around her, friends around her and she dictates when she likes to talk.’
Dame Esther first spoke about her cancer treatment in May of this year.
The mother-of-three and grandmother-of-five said at the time she decided to announce the news because she “found it difficult to sneak around different hospitals in an unconvincing disguise.”
She was being treated with a new cancer drug and would “soon” have a scan that would show whether the treatment is working.
Dame Esther (pictured last year) has revealed that her lung cancer, which she revealed she was diagnosed with in January, was rated as stage 4
Dame Esther (pictured in January) has been treated with a new cancer drug and is due to undergo a scan ‘soon’ which would reveal whether or not the treatment is working
Dame Esther became a household name after presenting That’s Life! from 1973 to 1994.
In addition to her work as a journalist, Dame Esther is also known for setting up Childline in 1986, a charity that provides support to young people up to the age of 19. It became part of The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in 2006.
She also founded The Silver Line in 2013, a charity that supports elderly people in the UK battling loneliness.
In 2021, Dame Esther received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Women of the Year Awards for her charitable work.
She was appointed a DBE in 2015 for services to children and the elderly through ChildLine and The Silver Line.