Unsuspecting Nick Marshall had put his headaches and massive sweats down to stress until he got a shock letter from the doctor through the post.

The letter, from a Leeds GP to whom Nick had unknowingly served a pint in his pub, urged him to get checked out for a condition called Acromegaly which strikes just three people in one million.

Instead of waiting months to see an NHS specialist, the 40-year-old went private and, luckily, was diagnosed immediately.

The tumour could even have been growing for 15 years without him knowing.

Nick, who runs the New Inn pub at Calverley, said: "The doctor just had to look at me and he knew I had it. Suddenly the migraines, my big hands and enlarged brow and jaw all made sense.

"The specialist told me I could have had the tumour growing slowly for 15 years and I never knew."

Since the life-saving operation, Nick has been reunited with the GP and has invited him back to the pub for a free pint to say thank you.

Grateful Nick said: "I wrote him a letter back saying his diagnosis was bang on and invited him for a thank-you drink."

This week Nick finally finished five gruelling weeks of intensive radiotherapy at the Yorkshire Cancer Centre in Leeds.

He now has to have regular check-ups and monthly injections to keep his condition under control.