Elle Macpherson reveals secret battle with cancer
Elle Macpherson has revealed how she shunned the advice of dozens of doctors after being diagnosed with breast cancer seven years ago.
The Aussie supermodel has revealed her health journey for the first time in her new memoir Elle: Life, Lessons, and Learning to Trust Yourself, sharing how she decided to forge her own path of wellness to tackle the disease.
Speaking candidly about her health to Australian Women's Weekly, the 60-year-old said deciding to take a holistic approach to fighting cancer was “the hardest thing I have ever done”.
After being diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 53 after a lumpectomy, Macpherson's doctors recommended a mastectomy with radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, plus reconstruction of her breast to fight the illness.
“It was a shock, it was unexpected, it was confusing, it was daunting in so many ways,” she told the magazine.
“It really gave me an opportunity to dig deep in my inner sense to find a solution that worked for me."
“It was a wonderful exercise in being true to myself, trusting myself and trusting the nature of my body and the course of action that I had chosen.”
The model instead opted for “an intuitive, heart-led, holistic approach” to treating her cancer that used a “combination of therapies and lifestyle changes to treat and heal the whole person”.
“Saying no to standard medical solutions was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” she said. “But saying no to my own inner sense would have been even harder.”
Elle said that she recognised that her approach to cancer isn't for everyone, but she felt the holistic approach was best for her overall health.
“I came to the understanding that there was no sure thing and absolutely no guarantees. There was no ‘right’ way, just the right way for me”, she writes, according to Women’s Weekly.
“Sometimes an authentic choice from the heart makes no sense to others … but it doesn’t have to. People thought I was crazy but I knew I had to make a choice that truly resonated with me.
“To me, that meant addressing emotional as well as physical factors associated with breast cancer. It was time for deep, inner reflection. And that took courage.”
Macpherson, who shares two sons, Flynn, 26, and Cy, 21, with former partner, Arpad Busson, said her medical decisions caused some tension in the family, admitting that her sons were skeptical of her choices.
“Cy simply thought that chemo kills you. And so he never wanted me to do it because he thought that was a kiss of death,” she said.
“Flynn, being more conventional, wasn’t comfortable with my choice at all. He is my son, though, and would support me through anything and love me through my choices, even if he didn’t agree with them.”
Reflecting on her current health, Macpherson said, “In traditional terms, they’d say I’m in clinical remission, but I would say I’m in utter wellness. And I am."
“Truly, from every perspective, every blood test, every scan, every imaging test … but also emotionally, spiritually and mentally — not only physically."
Image credits: Instagram