Mel Schilling, best known for her work on Married At First Sight as a relationship coach, has revealed the very sad news that she has been diagnosed with cancer – and shared an inspirational message with her followers, along with an update on her prognosis and how it felt being diagnosed.
"'YOU HAVE CANCER'. Three little words that everyone dreads but no one ever expects to hear," she began in a caption that accompanied a sweet photo of herself with her partner and daughter. "Last Thursday my consultant told me those 3 words."
Schilling then went on to explain her symptoms, which included stomach cramps.
"About a month ago when I was filming in Australia I developed severe stomach cramps on set, I put it down to all the travel I’d been doing and the upset it caused to my system. I saw my GP in Sydney and he put it down to constipation, gave me some laxatives and sent me on my way," she shared. "Fortunately I knew something still wasn’t right so I booked in for a scan when I returned to the UK. On Thursday I was told I had colon cancer and in an instant my whole life changed."
Colon cancer is a form of bowel cancer, as per Cancer Research UK, which says there are around 42,000 new cases of bowel cancer diagnosed in the UK each year.
In recent times, campaigner Deborah James (also known by her ego 'Bowel Babe') did incredible work in terms of raising awareness about the disease, which some might mistakenly believe just impacts older males. In actuality, bowel cancer is the third most common form of cancer found in females.
Bowel cancer symptoms include (via Bowel Cancer UK):
- Bleeding from your bottom and/or blood in your poo
- A persistent and unexplained change in bowel habit
- Unexplained weight loss
- Extreme tiredness for no obvious reason
- A pain or lump in your tummy
Continuing on, Schilling added that she is gearing up to have an operation to remove her tumour and it will mean spending Christmas Day in hospital this year.
"I had planned to travel to Northern Ireland with my family to spend Christmas with loved ones. Instead tomorrow morning I’m checking in to hospital to have an operation to remove a 5cm tumour in my colon, a tumour that had it gone undetected for much longer would have killed me.
"Despite this I feel incredibly blessed that it’s a cancer that is relatively easy to eradicate, I’m expected to make a full recovery though it’s a rough road ahead. I also feel so lucky to have an incredible support network around me, both personally and professionally, my own family and my TV family have been amazing this past few days."
Sharing more of her positive spirit in the face of adversity, Schilling also urged her followers to push for a referral or a second opinion if they feel something isn't right with their body.
"It will be so tough to spend Xmas Day in hospital instead of being surrounded by family but getting rid of Terry (what I’ve named my tumour) will be the best present of all. I just wanted to finish by saying that if something doesn’t feel right, please, please don’t ignore it and if you don’t think the answers you have got are right, keep going until you do, it might just save your life."
Here's wishing her all the very best and a speedy recovery.
For more information about bowel cancer, and all other types of cancer, visit Cancer Research UK's website
Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
