Kate Garraway has recalled a “terrible” phone call she received from a doctor two weeks ago, as her husband remains in a coma.
The TV presenter’s husband Derek Draper has been in ICU since the end of March, after contracting the coronavirus, and has been in a coma over the past few weeks.
Although the 52-year-old is now technically free from the virus, doctors don’t know if he will ever recover from the damage COVID-19 inflicted on his body.
Speaking to The Sun, Kate said she received a call from a senior doctor in the intensive care unit two weeks ago – and they didn’t have great news for her.
She said: “My first question, the one I always ask when the hospital call, was, ‘Is Derek still alive?’ and he said he was, but then asked me what my greatest fear was.”
“I said, ‘Derek dying’ and he replied, “Well, now I think I have to give you a second worst case scenario, which is that he never changes from this, that he is locked in this for ever.”
“He said, ‘I’m not telling you this to scare you. It’s because we don’t know if he can recover. We’ll only know over the coming weeks and months.’ I threw up, there and then.”
The Good Morning Britain host described it as a “second level of loss”, as even if he doesn’t die – he may never wake up.
At present, Derek is able to breathe through a tracheotomy, but an MRI scan has revealed he has holes in his heart.
Kate’s husband also has a damaged liver and pancreas, is on kidney dialysis, and is now diabetic.
