Tasmanian Olympic champion swimmer Ariarne Titmus has revealed that she recently underwent surgery to remove two benign tumours from her right ovary.
The tumours were detected during an MRI scan that was initially intended to assess a hip injury.
In a post on Instagram, Titmus expressed her relief at the successful surgery and her gratitude that the tumours were discovered before they caused further health complications.
“For a while I’ve been managing an ongoing hip injury and three weeks ago I had an MRI to suss out exactly what was going on,” Titmus posted.
“Sure enough, there was a little something with the hip that is completely manageable.”
“However it was something else that the doctors picked up on that made everything else seem irrelevant.”
“A large growth was found on my right ovary.”
“For anyone that knows me, they’d know I’d give up anything in the world to be a mother, it’s my biggest dream so this was a scary time for me.”
Titmus said she was “petrified” of possibly losing the ovary or “implications that could affect me and my desire to have children one day” due to the two benign tumours, each four centimetres in size, called dermoids.
“However, I am one of the lucky ones. I’m feeling well and relieved they are out,” Titmus said.
“Being an athlete is tough. Being a woman is tough. In the past month I’ve learnt more about my body and what it is capable of.”
“I’ve learnt that being fit and healthy doesn’t mean you’re immune to these things.”
“I feel blessed that I found these tumours before they got even bigger and started to have real implications on my health.”
The post prompted an outpouring of support from fellow swimmers, teammates and even international rivals.
Titmus plans to take a few weeks to rest and recover before returning to training.
