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Reform UK’s Scottish leader has revealed he was diagnosed with prostate cancer on the day of the Holyrood election.
Malcolm Offord said it “wasn’t the best day” to receive the news, but after having surgery last week he is now “raring to go”.
Lord Offord has set his sights on winning a majority for Reform UK in the 2031 Scottish Parliament election, saying his party could then “make Scotland the most successful country in the world”.
The MSP was speaking to an audience at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival on Thursday.
During Matt Forde’s Political Party event, the host noticed a hospital band on Lord Offord’s wrist.
The politician told him: “I just had a procedure last Wednesday to remove my prostate. So I am now clear. It was last Wednesday.”
He said he was “feeling pretty good” after surgery, and added that “final confirmation” of his prostate cancer had come on May 7, which was “the weirdest thing”.
He added: “The thing about the prostate is it is out and gone, I can move on.
“But the point is it is pretty routine, I am 61 years old, about to become 62, it happens in a lot of men that age.
“The good news is that medics are all over this, they know what they are doing, they know how to fix this, they can fix it fast and there is plenty of life after that.”
He urged men to “just get checked”, saying: “Every male in the room knows that you get checked.”
He said having cancer diagnosed was “a scary thing”, but added: “I’ve got a couple of pals who have been through this, so it doesn’t hold the same level of fear.
“I think the benefit is people now talking about this, particularly men who didn’t talk about this in the past.”