JJ Chalmers is to have an operation to remove a piece of shrapnel from his leg next year.
JJ Chalmers
The 'Strictly Come Dancing' contestant recently revealed he has been battling a secret leg infection during his time on the BBC Latin and ballroom show after an old war wound flared up, and he is planning to have the shrapnel taken out in the new year.
He said: "As far as my surgeon’s concerned, this thing needs to get taken out of my leg.
"If we’d had the time, it would’ve been done by now, especially when it first flared up. But this is the situation. Life gets in the way, and that’s a great thing.
"I have the privilege of a life to have, so I’ll be getting it dug out in January, once my world calms down a little."
The TV presenter and former Royal Marine - who suffered life-changing injuries following an IED explosion in Afghanistan - has a six-inch scar which has become "pretty inflamed" and has left him in "stinging pain".
He told The Sun newspaper's Bizarre TV column: "My body is covered in scars and it’s full of shrapnel and frag and stuff from Afghanistan, which can sit quite happily for many years without any real issues.
"But the problem is, this one has been exacerbated.
"It can be the physical exertion or it could be the exhaustion. Unfortunately, what it does is it looks for the quickest way up to the surface of your skin, which is where the scar is.
"So it’s about a six-inch scar that’s pretty inflamed. It’s a very tender, stinging pain."
Last month, JJ insisted he wouldn't let the injury stop him dancing on the programme.
He said: "Whilst there's a level of pain and sensitivity with it, it's not anything I'm not used to.
"These are just the genuine side effects of being alive, that's the simplest way I can put it, enduring some level of pain.
"Until it gets to you know, an unbearable point or a really discomforting point, I'm not going to allow it to stop me doing what I love doing. And right now that's dancing.
"But on the flip side, it might seem quite alarming to people that I've done most of this competition with an infection in my leg but that's just the reality of what happens with this particular piece of shrapnel until they remove it."