How ‘Golden Bachelor’ Gerry Turner’s Shock Cancer Diagnosis Led to Theresa Nist Split

The Golden Bachelor‘s Gerry Turner is opening up about his health and how it impacted his relationship with Theresa Nist. The 72-year-old was diagnosed with a “bone marrow cancer,” also known Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia, earlier this year, he told PEOPLE. His doctors initially told him he had a “blood disorder.”

The news shocked the Indiana native and his wife, who had gotten married in a TV special dubbed The Golden Wedding. Turner revealed his conversation with Nist about his diagnosis was “brief,” and he said Nist was “a little bit awestruck by the news.”