Survivor castaway AXED from the show after just 48 hours over health fears in emotional showdown

SURVIVOR castaway Jackson Fox was axed from the show after just 48 hours on medical grounds.

Jackson - who was the franchise's first openly transgender contestant - was cut in Wednesday's emotional premier of season 42 after producers found out he's on lithium.

The 48-year-old healthcare worker from Pasadena, Texas, broke down in tears as Survivor host Jeff Probst asked him to leave.

Jeff paid a rare visit to the Taku tribe for a one-on-one chat with Jackson, where he talked about Jackson's last-minute disclosure to bosses that he is on lithium.

He began taking it around 2016 while looking after his ill mother to help him sleep and deal with his anxiety. 

Jackson revealed his medical situation a day before filming began, explaining that he "didn't need it anymore."

Jeff explained that producers had allowed him on the show for the first two days because "nothing's going to happen in 24, 48 hours so nobody's worried about you at this point".

But he added that Jackson would have to leave due to the potential for the medication to clash with the side effects of the game - which often leaves contestants dehydrated, sleep-deprived, stressed, and taking part in physically grueling activities.

"That's where our concern came," the presenter said.

"The cumulative effect of the show would have a potentially very bad impact on you. And we don't want that. Your safety is paramount. We can't do it. We can't."

A tearful Jackson - who had auditioned for Survivor a decade earlier as a woman - told Jeff that he understood the decision to send him home.

He added that there's still a "stigma" surrounding lithium use but believed it wouldn't interfere with his participation on the show.

"And they're like, 'That was a huge drug back in the day.' That was a scary drug to be on," Jackson continued.

"Their first thought is - the transition. Was it because of the transition? I'm like, 'That had nothing to do with it.' If that was the case, I would've been on lithium 20 years ago because I was so unhappy. But that wasn't the case."

He later returned to his tribe and told them he would have to leave the show, prompting many of his castmates to break down in tears.

Jackson called his time on the show "the best 48 hours ever."

"It's weird that I'm getting emotional about it but even to test yourself for 48 hours, it is such an adventure," Jackson went on.

"I take this with love. I know I will be friends with these people. I appreciate you giving me this opportunity.

"For someone who didn't like anything about them for 40 years, then have someone say people liked things about you that you didn't know that you were capable of, speaks volumes."