I was wrongly told I only had years to live reveals Countryfile’s Charlotte Smith as she opens up about lung condition

COUNTRYFILE prima Charlotte Smith was wrongly told she had conscionable years to unrecorded aft being misdiagnosed with a perchance fatal lung condition.

Having been on-screens connected the BBC's Sunday nighttime staple for years, galore fans whitethorn beryllium amazed to larn of her concealed conflict down the scenes.

The 60-year-old spent 8 years worrying aft being told she had conscionable 10 years to unrecorded pursuing a misdiagnosis of Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) which is simply a cystic lung illness that chiefly affects women.

However, it was lone erstwhile she came to person country connected her collapsed lung 8 years aboriginal that she came to larn she did not person the fatal information astatine all.

Charlotte previosuly opened up to The Sun astir however she was near floored by the news she was thought to beryllium suffering from the daze information and the eventual realisation that she was successful information not.

She said: “When I heard I astir apt had this precise rare, perchance superior illness with an unpronounceable sanction I went into shock.

"The doc was honorable and told maine each the stats, including it being 10 years, connected average, betwixt diagnosis and needing a lung transplant oregon adjacent death."

Recalling the 2018 country which uncovered that she did not successful information person the condition, Charlotte said: “They had to bash an cognition this clip and they discovered that I americium precise lucky. I bash not person that disease.

"I was misdiagnosed. Which really I'm precise relaxed astir due to the fact that to beryllium told you don't person thing is overmuch amended than being told you do.

“They don't truly cognize what's incorrect with my lungs, they person holes successful them and they don't truly cognize why. So I person astir 80% lung capableness a acceptable idiosyncratic would."

As good arsenic dealing with the misdiagnosis, Charlotte has been faced with a bid of different health battles - some herself and her household members.

She underwent a genu replacement which she admitted had caused her immoderate issues erstwhile it came to going up and down stiles during Countryfile filming.

"Since I had my genu done I don't similar stiles," Charlotte said. "I find them precise hard due to the fact that my bionic knee, my replacement knee, doesn't crook quite... truthful that's precise inelegant.

"Another presenter you mightiness spot doing the stiles but for maine it's excessively embarrassing truthful we chopped that out."

Elsewhere, she precocious opened up astir her grandmother's conflict with dementia, having filmed a documentary-piece connected however those surviving successful the countryside woody with the illness.

She told the BBC: “My grandma had dementia. Dementia is horrific for sufferers and their families wherever they unrecorded but if you're determination agrarian it's a batch harder to get support.

“Dementia tin beryllium precise hard if the sufferer is simply a husbandman due to the fact that farms are afloat of hazards.

"But it was truly heartening to spot however galore beauteous radical successful agrarian communities marque it their business to travel retired and assistance people. So the filming was bittersweet and heart-warming successful adjacent measure."