Married At First Sight relationship expert Mel Schilling has shared an update about her cancer battle.
WATCH: MAFS expert Melanie Schilling shares her words of wisdom.
In a candid moment, the 52-year-old told UK radio station MagicFM that she was feeling “flat” as she undergoes her third round of chemotherapy.
“I’m feeling a little flat today actually, to be totally honest with you,” she said to the hosts. “It sort of feels like being hungover.”
The MAFS expert added that she is figuring out how to best “juggle” work in between treatment.
“This thing is not beating me, I’m here to fight, I just need to make some adaptions.”
This comes a month after Mel’s previous update, where she revealed that while her chemotherapy treatments had left her “tired” she was, for the most part, “doing well” and was fortunate to have not lost any hair.
She elaborated that her only side effects from chemotherapy were “tingly fingers” and sensitivity to cold weather.
“I’ve learned there is a lot of different types of chemo…so the type of chemo that I have, doesn’t really make me sick,” she shared in an interview with a British breakfast radio show.
Mel first confirmed that she had begun treatment for colon cancer in February, sharing a video to her Instagram story as she stood outside of Kingston Hospital in England, sharing that it was “day one of chemo”.
“I have so much stuff with me thanks to all the advice I had on what to bring. It’s like I’m moving in for six weeks. Here it goes,” she said.
Toward the end of 2023, Mel was on top of the world.
She was busy filming Season 11 of MAFS – and about to start work on her third season of the UK version. She’d also recently relocated to Blighty with her husband, Gareth Brisbane, and their eight-year-old daughter Maddie.
“Everything was going great, but, I was exhausted all the time,” Mel, 51, has previously told New Idea.
“At the time, I put it down to all the international travel I was doing, between Australia and the UK, and being so busy with work.”
But just before Christmas, Mel bravely shared, via Instagram, that she’d been diagnosed with colon cancer.
“It was a curveball,” Mel admitted. “It shouldn’t have [been], but to be honest, I wasn’t paying attention to my body or prioritising my health at all.”
Mel’s symptoms included painful stomach cramps.
After initially seeing her GP, a follow-up consultation with a specialist led to the “out of the blue” diagnosis.
“It has been a wake-up call,” Mel said.
During our catch-up, Mel was upbeat and her usual positive self, revealing it had been just over a month since she had surgery in London to remove the tumour – which she named ‘Terry’.
“I’m recovering really well and I’ll start chemotherapy soon,” she said.
“Right now, I’m just focusing on my gut health, improving my diet and getting as fit and strong as I can before I start the next phase of my treatment.
“I’m doing everything I can to beat this.”
Mel admitted the drama in the recent season of MAFS was an incredible distraction from her health struggles.
“This [is] my tenth season and I can honestly say that some of the behaviour [by the brides and grooms] has genuinely shocked me,” said Mel, who worked as a psychologist for 20 years prior to MAFS.
She added that she and fellow experts John Aiken and Alessandra Rampolla have had to “call out a lot of bad behaviour” this year.
However, she says the show isn’t just about drama.
“[This year] we have some of our oldest couples,” she shared with a smile.
“We have some diverse relationships and we also get to see some beautiful bonds forming. It’s got it all.”
Mel’s MAFS colleagues have all been “wonderfully supportive” since learning of her cancer diagnosis.
“John, Alessandra and all involved with the production have been just gorgeous,” she said.
“I’ve been really well taken care of.”
