BBC presenter Lauren Laverne diagnosed with rare 'smouldering myeloma' less than two years after cancer recovery

Lauren Laverne has revealed that she’s been diagnosed with a chronic blood and bone marrow disorder nearly two years after recovering from cancer.

The BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs presenter wrote on Instagram on Friday (17 July) that she has a condition known as smouldering myeloma.

“I’m quite a private person by nature but am sharing this as one of the many things I’ve learned after going through health challenges in recent years is that talking about this stuff helps people,” the 48-year-old said.

“I’ve been diagnosed with something called smouldering myeloma (yes that is a weird name and no I’d never heard of it either).

“It’s an asymptomatic blood and bone marrow disorder that in some people can develop into blood cancer.

“Thankfully the risk of this happening in my case is pretty low.”

According to Blood Cancer UK, ‘smouldering myeloma is the name given to myeloma that has no symptoms or signs of damage to your organs’.

“If you have smouldering myeloma, you won’t usually need treatment straight away,” the charity explains.

Laverne said she feels ‘OK’ at the moment and does not currently need treatment.

“Most people my age who have it have no idea – it tends to be cancer survivors like me who are diagnosed early as we’re so carefully monitored,” she added.

“It is a chronic condition – no cure yet – and it does mean my immune system is a bit compromised, so I will need to take good care of myself and I will be carefully monitored with blood tests, MRIs and bone marrow biopsies (which I have recently discovered are even less fun than they sound).”

Laverne reiterated that she hopes to spread awareness of the condition.

“It’s been a lot, especially coming less than two years after my last diagnosis, but I know that seeing others in the public eye cope with comparable situations has helped me, so I thought I’d be upfront about it,” she wrote.

“I’ve had some difficult experiences in the last eight years, but I have learned more from them than some people do in a lifetime and that is helping me right now.

“I am so grateful for that.”

Laverne was diagnosed with cancer in August 2024, revealing in November of that year that she had been given the all-clear.

If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.