Doctor watching HGTV notices lump on woman's throat, leading to life-changing diagnosis

Making an appearance on HGTV seems to be as good for your health as it is for finding a dream home.

That was the case for Nicole McGuinness who learned she has thyroid cancer after an eagle-eyed doctor spotted a lump on her throat while watching her appearance on an HGTV show.

McGuinness and the doctor, Erich Voigt shared their story with Good Morning America on Tuesday.

As GMA reports, in September 2017 McGuinness filmed an episode of Beachfront Bargain Hunt Renovation in North Carolina shortly after her recovery from a brain tumor.

When her episode aired in May, Voigt, a head and neck surgeon from New York caught the episode, and noticed, as he told the hosts of GMA, "a subtlety in her neck."

"I'm trained to examine patients, and I teach medical students, and it just caught my eye, and I knew it wasn't right," he said.

So, he turned to Facebook. In a post from May 5, he shared a clip from the show and expressed his concern for McGuinness's health:

"I am watching a tv show and notice this woman has a left thyroid mass. She needs a sonogram and fine needle biopsy. I wonder if she knows and hope it’s benign. #beachfrontbargainhunt."

McGuiness told GMA that though she herself does not have a Facebook page, she was alerted to the doctor's posting by her mother's friend. A biopsy later confirmed that she has thyroid cancer, and McGuiness says she's working with a team of doctors to get the treatment she needs.

On Tuesday, the pair went on the morning show to meet for the first time, where McGuinness thanked Voigt for his help.

"I have gone through a lot these past couple of years, and never expected to have to be a two-time cancer survivor, but without you keeping a vigilant eye and watching that show, who knows how long I would have gone on without that being checked," she told Voigt. "So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much."

"I'm really happy to help," Voigt said. "Doctors and nurses do this every day, and I'm happy to help."

Further evidence that being on HGTV will save your life: Back in 2013, Tarek El Moussa, host of Flip or Flop was also diagnosed with thyroid cancer after a nurse watching his show alerted show producers to a lump on the host's throat.