Strictly Come Dancing's Chris McCausland opens up on daughter fears as he shares health battle

Chris McCausland, who is paired with Dianne Buswell on the Strictly Come Dancing, has opened up on his health battle and fears for his daughter after she was born in recent months

Comedian Chris McCausland has opened up about the uncertainty surrounding his newborn daughter's health.

The Strictly Come Dancing star revealed that he and his wife Patricia face a tense wait to see if she will inherit the same condition that caused blindness in his family.

The 47 year old funnyman, who is currently showing off his dance moves on the 22nd series of Strictly with pro partner Dianne Buswell, shared his concerns on Gyles Brandreth's Rosebud podcast.

Discussing the recent addition to his family, Chris spoke candidly about the genetic disorder retinitis pigmentosa, which he suffers from, and the lack of definitive testing available for his daughter. He explained to Gyles, 76, the complexities of diagnosing the condition: "If the genome was a map of the United Kingdom, they think my problem is maybe somewhere in south west London but they haven't narrowed it down to a specific gene yet.

"But it meant that when my daughter was born we wanted to know whether she would have it and of course, there's just no test there's nothing.

"The analogue tests they do now are a lot more technological, they can check the electrical signals of the optic nerve as you're looking at things and see whether it's as strong as it should be and all these kinds of things, but nothing definitive. It's all just wait and see."

Reflecting on his own childhood and the rudimentary methods once used, Chris added: "When I was a kid this is how primitive it was, they even gave me glasses at one point. Glasses don't do anything," reports the Manchester Evening News.

"Even to this day they still can't test the gene and I took part in that 100k genome project where they map the genome of all known diseases and genetic defects and I got the all clear."

Chris has recently been more open about his blindness, its impact on his life now and in the past. He explained to Gyles that it's difficult to pinpoint exactly when he lost his sight "because you stop being able to do different things at different stages of life, but I would say late teens early 20s".

In a Channel 4 programme he created titled The Wonders of the World I Can't See, he confessed that he doesn't derive much pleasure from travelling, questioning: "What's the point going all that way to stand in front of the thing that everyone is looking at, but that I can't see?"

However, he later expressed that his self-perception has evolved over time, stating: "Don't get me wrong. I'm much more accepting of who I am these days I've stopped having tantrums every time I spill drinks or bang my head on the door frame.

"But a miracle to cure my blindness completely? Yeah, I'd consider that."

As the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing kicks off, the duo of Chris and Dianne, 35, is rapidly gaining popularity among fans. One enthusiast, as reported by the Liverpool Echo, gushed: "I can't cope with Chris and Dianne. They're my winners."

Another chimed in: "I'm in awe of Chris and Dianne they just are dynamite together. They are already my winners regardless of how far they go in the competition."

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