Sky Sports presenter Simon Thomas left This Morning hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield in tears after opening up about the tragic death of his wife.
Simon's wife Gemma, 40, passed away in November, just days after she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of blood cancer. He appeared on This Morning today to talk about the death and the heartbreaking moment he had to tell his young son Ethan that his mum was dead.
Credit: This Morning
Holly burst into tears and the pair were forced to pause the interview as they struggled to keep their emotions in.
She apologised to Simon for crying and praised him for his bravery as he shared the moment he had to tell his son. He told the hosts eight-year-old Ethan fell to the floor when given the devastating news, adding: "I wouldn't wish that moment on my worst enemy."
Simon said his wife had been suffering with headaches and 'flu-like symptoms' for a few weeks so went to her GP. The doctor told Gemma it was probably stress and didn't refer her to hospital, something which Simon said had made him angry for a while, but since sitting down and chatting to the doctor he said he no longer bears a grudge.
When she was eventually taken to hospital and diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, Simon says he fainted and that it 'cart-wheeled' from there. He told Holly and Phil she was given a 50 percent chance of survival as she begun chemotherapy.
"Over the course of that week it was encouraging - the white blood cell count was coming down," he said. Before adding he didn't get the chance to 'say goodbye'.
An emotional Simon said: "When you hear of people who get ill and they've been told they've got weeks, months, you have those chances to talk about it, to get your head around it. I never had that... she'd been perfectly fine the night before.
"Over that of the night she became more and more confused. I put her back into bed the night before and the last time that I ever spoke to her... I never had the chance to say goodbye.
"She died at quarter to six on the Friday night... I screamed at god. I asked, 'Why have you left my boy without a mum?'."
Simon is now hoping to highlight the need for better awareness of blood cancer and its symptoms.
Speaking to Bloodwise, he said: "I am making it my mission to raise awareness of the symptoms of blood cancer so that no other family has to suffer the heartbreak and pain that I and my son are going through.
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"Gemma went to her GP three times and each time her symptoms didn't point to anything serious so she was sent home.
"Whether or not earlier diagnosis would have saved Gemma's life we will never know - but I will always be left wondering whether she had started chemotherapy earlier, her story might have been a different one."
Earlier this month, Simon opened up about his battle with depression and anxiety following the passing of his wife, penning a heartbreaking blog post chronicling his issues.
Words cannot begin to describe the bravery Simon Thomas has shown in sharing his story and his grief with the world and he should be applauded for doing so, as still, far too many people suffering with depression, anxiety and mental health issues suffer in silence.
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Please, if you're reading this, don't be one of the silent ones. There is always someone willing to listen and willing to help.
If you are in need of help and someone to talk to, the CALM Zone are the Campaign Against Living Miserably and are doing inspirational work in helping people overcome their problems.
Featured Image Credit: ITVTopics: Football News, UK News, TV and Film, Football, norwich city, Sky Sports
