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Paul Burrell emotional as he reveals cancer diagnosis on TV

The former royal butler has been diagnosed with prostate cancer aged 64.

Watch: Paul Burrell shares cancer diagnosis on Lorraine

Paul Burrell admitted he feels he is on an "emotional rollercoaster" after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.

The 64-year-old former royal butler had tears in his eyes as he discussed the side effects of his hormone therapy treatment and the mental effect of receiving a cancer diagnosis with Lorraine Kelly on her ITV show.

Burrell said: “I’m tired because I'm on hormone therapy at the moment and it’s sort of robbing me of my testosterone.

Read more: Paul Burrell: Diana would be 'very upset and unhappy' at Harry & Meghan documentary

“My beard isn't growing like it should, I’m tired, I’m emotional, I get hot flashes.”

He added: “I'm on an emotional, educational rollercoaster, ups and downs, not knowing where I’m going to be."

Paul Burrell opened up about his cancer diagnosis on Lorraine. (ITV)
Paul Burrell opened up about his cancer diagnosis on Lorraine. (ITV)

The reality TV star - who was runner-up on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2004 – revealed he was diagnosed with cancer after going for medical check up for a new TV show.

He explained: “In the summer I had to go for a medical for a TV programme I was doing and I had a full MOT. Out of that came a surprisingly high PSA test [a chemical released by the prostate gland]. I had no idea what a PSA test was.

“So I went to my GP, he said, ‘This is unusual’ and he examined me and sent me for an MRI scan. And the MRI scan of course was the window in which they looked through and saw a shadow on my prostate.”

The father-of-two revealed he had flown to the US at Christmas to tell his sons face-to-face and they had told him, "Dad, we need to spend more time with you."

He urged other men over 50 to get tested for prostate cancer.

Paul Burrell, Former Butler to the late Diana, Princess of Wales  with his wife MARIAAt Buckingham Palace where he received the Royal Victorian Medal for his work in the Household of the late Diana, Princess of Wales.   (Photo by Avalon/Getty Images)
Paul Burrell received the Royal Victorian Medal in 1997 for his work in the Household of the late Diana, Princess of Wales.(Getty Images)

He said: “I don’t think men are particularly good at going to the doctors so if you love them, push them out of the door and get checked.”

Burrell was a footman at Buckingham Palace, serving the late Queen Elizabeth, before transferring to Highgrove House where he was butler to Princess Diana.

After Diana's death he published memoir A Royal Duty, about his time working for the Royal Family in 2003.

In Prince Harry's recent autobiography Spare, Burrell is referred to, but not by name, as he claimed the butler's book "made my blood boil".

He told Lorraine: “Why did he call me ‘Mummy’s Butler?’ Why couldn't he have asked, come to me personally and said he wasn't happy with the situation?

Paul Burrell appeared in I'm A Celebrity in 2004. (ITV)
Paul Burrell appeared in I'm A Celebrity in 2004. (ITV)

“I’ve always defended him down to the last minute and now I’m thinking, ‘Harry, you’ve lost the plot.’

“What’s happened? There's been a shift in that young man, he's changed and I’m saddened by it.

Read more: Prince Harry lists the 'only four times' he’s felt ‘totally helpless’ in book

“My mental health has taken a bashing, does he not consider that or the mental health of anybody that he writes about?”

In the Duke of Sussex's book Spare he wrote: "Mummy’s former butler had penned a tell-all which actually told nothing...

“My mother once called this butler a dear friend, trusted him implicitly. We did too. Now this.

“He was milking her disappearance for money. It made my blood boil.”

Watch: Paul Burrell: Diana would be 'very upset and unhappy' at Harry & Meghan documentary