Mel Schilling on Lorraine (Image: ITV)
Married at First Sight’s dating guru, Mel Schilling, appeared on on Monday (January 13), revealing that a year after her diagnosis, she is now in remission. The star also took the opportunity to alert viewers to the signs and symptoms of the disease.
Mel, a familiar face on Married at First Sight UK, initially graced the Australian version of the show when its second season debuted in 2016.
She first announced her cancer diagnosis via an post in December 2023, captioned: “‘YOU HAVE CANCER’, Three little words that everyone dreads but no one ever expects to hear.”
The star underwent laparoscopic surgery, during which the five-centimetre tumour was removed in a 90-minute procedure. Since her diagnosis, Mel has kept fans updated on her condition through social media and even became an ambassador for colorectal charity Occtopus, The Oxford Colon Cancer Trust.
While updating viewers on her health on Lorraine, Mel shared: “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!,” reports .
:
Mel Schilling with her daughter and dog (Image: Mel Schilling on Instagram)
Mel disclosed that her primary problem was a failure to heed her body’s warnings, elaborating: “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.
The dating guru further expressed her belief that women often neglect their symptoms because the medical profession tends to downplay female pain.
She asserted: “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.”
During her appearance on the ITV daytime programme, Mel urged those experiencing symptoms to take action: “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.'”
Don’t miss… [READ] [WATCH]
Mel was diagnosed with colon cancer last year (Image: Getty)
“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.”
In light of Married At First Sight Australia making a comeback to our TVs this month, the matchmaking expert also disclosed her tips for finding romance in 2025.
She advised: “Number one, make sure you are date ready. I think just because you’re single, doesn’t mean you’re ready to date.
“Particularly if you’ve just come out of a long term relationship, or a marriage and you’re just starting to move back into it. Number two is to get clear on your dating brand… When it comes to dating, particularly online dating, you need to have a brand.
“And really all that means is making sure the outside matches the inside. And thirdly, don’t do it alone. You don’t have to do it alone. Dating can be such a tough pursuit.
“There are a lot of ups and downs and there is a lot of rejection so if you can go through it with someone I call dating buddies or have a dating club, get together.”