Carol McGiffin happier than ever

OHMYGOSSIP — Carol McGiffin claims she and her fiance Mark Cassidy are “happier than ever” despite her being diagnosed with breast cancer last year.

The former ‘Loose Women’ panelist – who was diagnosed with breast cancer last year – has admitted that although the illness put a strain on her relationship with fiance Mark Cassidy, they’re still very much in love.

She said: “We’re probably happier than ever, grateful to be living where we live, being in the jobs that we’ve got. I wouldn’t say we’re more in love than ever, but we’re definitely still in love.”

The 55-year-old star confessed not being able to spend quality time with Mark, 33, and their friends was one of the hardest parts of being diagnosed.

She told the latest issue of Bella magazine: “It was really important for me to get back to normal as soon as possible. Even though I still wasn’t feeling 100 per cent, I was determined to go on holiday, to get out and see friends. We hadn’t done that for a year. When we got the diagnosis it was like, ‘Oh God’. I know I was ill but it did p**s me off that we couldn’t go on holiday. It kind of made us appreciate the holiday we did get to go on after it was all over.”

Carol – who was previously married to BBC Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans – also rubbished the idea that relationships start to go downhill after seven years, having been with Mark for that length of time.

She added: “I don’t believe in it. I don’t know where it came from. I think it’s largely couples that are married and have kids. I’ve had friends go, ‘Things aren’t so good at the moment’, but we haven’t got kids, we haven’t got anything to worry about really, like schools. We just go on holiday and live in my flat and it’s all easy.”