Fear of doctors led woman to ignore huge tumour

Mrs Haigh, 79, had been living with the tumour - thought to be the largest ever reported in the UK - for 20 years before husband George persuaded her to go to hospital last October after it started bleeding.

Mr Mugamad Quraishi, who removed the tumour during a five-hour operation at Doncaster Royal Infirmary, said in his 20-year career he’d never seen such a huge growth.

Mrs Haigh, of Thorne, near Doncaster, now has a new lease of life after the successful operation.

She said: “I know I should have done something sooner about the tumour but I wasn’t in any pain and, I am ashamed to say, I was afraid to go to the doctors about it.

“Now though, I wouldn’t hesitate to see a doctor about anything, and would encourage people who may be experiencing health problems of any kind to get help right away, because the people at the hospital are fantastic.”

Mr Quraishi said: “The operation itself was quite challenging and I am happy with the outcome and that the operation was a complete success. The greatest challenge was to prevent the side of Joyce’s face from becoming permanently paralysed which we successfully prevented.”