Gillian Wright’s character Jean Slater has been mired in misfortune since she first arrived on Albert Square back in 2004. Jean’s initial storyline followed her long-suffering battle with bipolar disorder and a later plot saw the hapless character diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The line between truth and fiction can sometimes become blurry, and this is certainly true in the case of Gillian Wright.
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The actress revealed that she too was in the grip of a health battle a couple of years back.
In 2016, the actress revealed she’d been struck down the year before by a shock sickness and was rushed to hospital.
It was here she was told by doctors she was lucky to be alive after experiencing “unbelievable” stomach pains.
Speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Gillian recalled that traumatic episode: “It was touch and go. It’s no exaggeration to say I had a real brush with death.”
After experiencing a sharp pain in her stomach that wouldn’t let up, a neighbour dialled 999 and she was rushed to hospital.
After medical professionals ran some tests on Gillian, it was revealed the soap star has been struck down with acute pancreatitis.
What is acute pancreatitis?
According to the National Pancreatic Foundation (NPF), Acute pancreatitis is an inflammatory condition of the pancreas that is painful and at times deadly.
“Despite the great advances in critical care medicine over the past 20 years, the mortality rate of acute pancreatitis has remained at about 10 percent,” explained the health body.
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Although, as the NHS, points out, most people with acute pancreatitis start to feel better within about a week and have no further problems.
What are the warning signs?
According to the health body, the main symptom of acute pancreatitis is a severe pain that develops suddenly in the centre of your tummy.
Other symptoms of acute pancreatitis include:
- Feeling or being sick (vomiting)
- Diarrhoea
- Indigestion
- A high temperature of 38C or more (fever)
- Yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
- Tenderness or swelling of the tummy
- Fast heartbeat (tachycardia)
- Eating or drinking may make symptoms worse, especially if you eat fatty foods, warns the health site
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Luckily, Gillian made a full-recovery, but at one point she felt pushed to the brink: “The pain was unbearable. If somebody had given me the choice of living with that pain a day longer or swallowing a pill to end it all, I’d have taken the tablet.”
What are potential complications of acute pancreatitis?
According to the NHS, one of the gravest complications that can lead on from acute pancreatitis is pancreatic necrosis and infection.
The body explains: “Sometimes people with severe acute pancreatitis can develop a complication where the pancreas loses its blood supply.
“When this happens, the pancreas can become infected, which can spread into the blood (sepsis) and cause organ failure.
The health site continues: “People with necrosis and an infection may need injections of antibiotics and surgery to remove the dead tissue.”
According to the health body, this is a very serious complication that needs treating, and it can be fatal.
As the NPF explains, approximately 15 percent of patients develop a severe disease as a result of acute pancreatitis.
“Therefore, it is extremely important to seek medical attention if experiencing signs or symptoms of acute pancreatitis,” it adds.
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