The Eagle eyed Irish surgeon

Conor Lenihan the Irish Overseas Aid Minister is grateful for taking part in Prime Time, on RTE, in December, and even more so to an eagle eyed Irish surgeon.

An Irish surgeon watching tv noticed a lump on the left side of the minister's jaw. The following day the surgeon rang Mr Lenihan's office in Dublin, and left a message asking him to call back about "a private matter". When they spoke the surgeon advised the Irish minister to consult with a medical specialist immediately. Doctors discovered Mr Lenihan had a tumour which, although benign, could possible have caused disfigurement and speech difficulties if it had been ignored.

Conor Lenihan said he had ignored the lump as he was preoccupied with work. The 43-year-old has urged people to get even the smallest symptom checked by their doctor as soon as possible. "I decided to go public because I think there is a tendency among men when something like that happens to ignore it. It was a benign tumour, so to speak. God, I was terribly relieved, obviously, but I was a bit shocked when I got the call. I decided to go public because I think there is a tendency among men when something like that happens to ignore it or almost wish it away or something. I think there's an argument - very strong argument - just for people generally to learn from it and say: 'Look, get detected early and find out if you have something like that."

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The Eagle eyed Irish surgeon