Married At First Sight’s Mel Schilling gave fans a cancer update live on Lorraine on Monday morning.
The Married At First Sight star, 53, revealed that she had been diagnosed with colon cancer back in December 2023, and she had to have surgery to remove a 5cm tumour.
On Monday, she appeared on Lorraine to talk about the signs and symptoms to raise awareness to those watching at home.
The dating coach also revealed some very positive news a year after being told the news that she has cancer.
Mel told Lorraine: ‘I am doing well, the cancer is in remission.
‘Ahh Lorraine it’s been a year… Christmas Eve last year, I just got out of hospital and I just made it home in time for Christmas. It was pretty grim.
‘I was just feeling very grateful to be out of hospital but still in a lot of pain and recovering.
‘So fast forward a year to the Christmas we have just had, it was my first cold Christmas and we went crazy. We went Christmas crazy!’
Speaking about the symptoms that she ignored before her diagnosis, Mel added: ‘I think one of the big issues that came out of this for me is that I wasn’t listening to my body.
‘I was just full speed ahead, doing my job, travelling the world, doing my thing and living my best life, but all of these symptoms were happening in my body and I wasn’t paying attention.
‘There was pain, there was constipation. I hadn’t been to the toilet in three weeks by the time it became acute, and I somehow managed to ignore that.’
She also thinks that women could have a tendency to ignore symptoms, explained: ‘Particularly as women, if we have symptoms in the abdominal region generally we say “I’ve got to toughen up – that’s something to do with my cycle” or “It’s a hormonal issue” and we’ve grown up knowing every month we have pain and we just have to get on with it.
‘So we have that tendency to grin and bear it and I think there is a flow there to the medical profession where they are very quick to dismiss a woman with pain.’
The Channel 4 star has urged anyone who has had a change in bowel movements to get it checked out.
Mel added: ‘It’s not an old person’s disease anymore. It used to be thought of that way but I’ve been flooded with messages from people in their twenties and thirties who have said “I’ve had the same diagnosis as you Mel” or “I’m having similar symptoms. Thanks for the nudge, I’m going to get it checked out.”
‘So I think my message is, if you’re having symptoms, if you’re noticing a change in your bowel habits, let’s not be scared to talk about it anymore – it’s just poo.’
After getting the tumour removed, Mel underwent chemotherapy at the start of February last year when it was revealed that the cancer had spread through her colon into the muscle.
Sharing the heartbreaking news about her health on social media, Mel wrote at the time: ‘”YOU HAVE CANCER.” Three little words that everyone dreads but no one ever expects to hear.
‘Last Thursday my consultant told me those three words.
‘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.
‘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.
‘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.
‘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.’
Mel has been an expert on the Australian version of Married At First Sight since 2016, while she joined the UK edition in 2021.