Loose Women cast member Gloria Hunniford
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Loose Women star Gloria Hunniford on terrifying hospital dash as sepsis ‘flattened’ her

The condition can be life-threatening

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Loose Women star Gloria Hunniford previously spoke about how she was rushed to A&E with life-threatening sepsis.

The 84-year-old telly legend opened up in early 2023 about having kidney stones. As a result a stent was placed to help drain them.

But Gloria – who appears on The One Show on June 26 – was then rushed to hospital after feeling unwell and had to undergo a second surgery to remove it. However, as she began to come around, she became transferred to another hospital because she had sepsis.

Loose Women cast member Gloria Hunniford
Gloria opened up about the health battle (Credit: ITV)

Loose Women star Gloria Hunniford on hospital dash

In a 2023 interview, Gloria said she felt like somebody had “put a tap” in her body and “drained all the energy”. Describing her experience, she told The Mirror: “The last thing [the doctors] said before I went to theatre was: ‘When I take this stent out you are going to feel so much better.’

“But the next thing I knew coming out of the anaesthetic, was a nurse saying to me: ‘Don’t worry, don’t panic. But we are having to transfer you by ambulance to a different hospital because we can’t get your blood pressure up.'”

Gloria, whose showbiz career spans over 50 years, was later told by doctors that she had sepsis of the kidney. “Thankfully it hadn’t gone beyond the kidney. I guess that’s why I felt so awful and it did flatten me for a while,” she added.

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that is caused when the body releases chemicals to fight an infection. These chemicals then damage the body’s own tissues and organs and can lead to organ failure, shock and death.

Gloria Hunniford looking worried on Loose Women today
Loose Women star Gloria recalled her hospital ordeal (Credit: ITV)

Gloria ‘back to normal’

Because she had two procedures so close together, the Loose Women legend was told it could take up to six months to return to some sort of “normality”. But Gloria was back to herself in a matter of weeks thanks to her beloved family and positive outlook.

In the interview, Gloria also showered husband Stephen with praise for helping her recover thanks to his cooking.

Read more: Gloria Hunniford admits ‘worry’ over Ant McPartlin and wife Anne-Marie’s name choice for baby

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Joey Crutchley
Freelance Writer