'Let's not sugarcoat it - it's been horrible'

MAFS dating coach Mel Schilling opens up on her battle with colon cancer

- KENZI DEVINE

With her warm nature and positive attitude, relationship guru Mel Schilling is surprisingly buoyant as she speaks eloquently about her cancer diagnosis and the chemotherapy she’s currently going through. The Married At First Sight dating coach, who was

diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in December 2023, invited OK! into the stunning new South West London home she shares with husband Gareth and nine-year-old daughter Maddie. And she opened up about what has been an incredibly tough six months with admirable candour.

Mel, 52, who has now relocated to the UK permanently from her native Australia, is determined to change the stigma around the signs of her cancer. She is hellbent on using her platform to raise awareness after she was shockingly misdiagnosed twice before her tumour was discovered. But, despite her upbeat nature and determination to beat the disease, there is no sugarcoating it and there are tricky times that come hand in hand with going through chemo.

“It’s getting tough now,” she says. “I’m about halfway through and it’s getting hard. Feeling fatigued and nauseous is a bigger part of my everyday life. It feels like I’m hungover or pregnant every day, which is not fun.

“In true ‘me’ fashion, the day we moved was the day I started chemotherapy – I don’t do things by halves. It’s been a tricky time as I’ve been adjusting to going through that and moving house. But Gareth has been doing most of the move so I’m very lucky he’s happy to pick up the slack.”