Elle Macpherson has revealed how she took a "holistic approach" after refusing chemotherapy following her secret breast cancer diagnosis seven years ago.
The 60-year-old supermodel was diagnosed with HER2-positive oestrogen-receptive intraductal carcinoma after undergoing a lumpectomy – a removal of the cancer tissues from the breast – in 2017.
Elle received advice from 32 doctors and was urged to undergo a mastectomy, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and a reconstruction of her breast.
© InstagramHowever, after praying and meditating on a beach in Miami, she went against their advice and the wishes of her family, turning against traditional medicine and opting to treat her condition with "an intuitive, heart-led holistic approach" instead.
"It was a shock, it was unexpected, it was confusing, it was daunting in so many ways and it really gave me an opportunity to dig deep in my inner sense to find a solution that worked for me," she told Women's Weekly.
She added: "Saying no to standard medical solutions was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. But saying no to my own inner sense would have been even harder."
Elle explained that her decision to try alternative methods to treat her cancer 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".
© InstagramElle admitted that undergoing chemotherapy and surgery were too "extreme" for her, saying: "People thought I was crazy," but her own plan "resonated" with her.
The Australian supermodel relocated to Phoenix, Arizona, for eight months where she "holistically treated" her cancer while following guidance from her own doctor, naturopathy, holistic dentist, osteopath, chiropractor, and two therapists.
© InstagramElle stayed in a rented house alone and spent her days "focusing and devoting every single minute to healing myself".
While Elle was happy to treat her cancer without pharmaceuticals, her sons Flynn, 26, and Cy, 21, and her former partner Arpad 'Arki' Busson had mixed reactions.
Cy threw his support behind his mom, believing chemotherapy was "a kiss of death", while Flynn "wasn't comfortable" with her decision.
© Getty Images"Flynn, being more conventional, wasn't comfortable with my choice at all," Elle explained. "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."
Their father Arki – who Elle split from in 2005 after almost 10 years together – also "didn't agree" with Elle's decision, but he did write her a letter telling her he was "proud" of "the courage I was showing".
© Getty ImagesElle is now in "clinical remission", but she prefers to call it "utter wellness".
Her diagnosis came four years after she discovered a lump in her breast on her 49th birthday in 2013. It was later confirmed to be benign.
"I was away shooting Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model, so I couldn't see my doctor and I was really panicking," she told the Mail on Sunday at the time.
© Getty Images"It was four weeks before I got the biopsy results, so it was a long drawn out and stressful period of not knowing. I was lucky – it was a fibroadenoma [a benign growth of fibrous tissue], but it was a really big warning."
She added: "I did some soul searching and realized that maybe I was taking the wrong vitamins and minerals, not eating properly, and was too stressed."
