Breast cancer survivors say they are angry and hurt by Elle Macpherson after the supermodel claimed she beat the disease by rejecting conventional medicine.
McPherson, 60, said the HER2-positive estrogen receptive intraductal carcinoma was detected in 2017 after she had a lumpectomy to remove a growth from her breast.
Watch the video above: Breast cancer survivors are angry with Elle Macpherson.
Get news from 7NEWS app: Download it today
The model revealed she ignored the advice of 32 doctors to undergo a mastectomy, radiation, chemotherapy and hormone therapy.
She instead chose a “holistic approach”, which included renting a house in Phoenix, Arizona, where she lived for eight months under the care of her doctor.
“Saying no to standard medical solutions was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” he said. The Australian Women's Weekly,
“People thought I was crazy, but I knew I had to make a choice that really resonated with me.”
McPherson says she is now “clinically fine, but I would say I am completely healthy.”
However, his decisions have faced strong criticism.
Breast cancer surgeon Cindy Mak said she has had patients who refused conventional treatments and had “quite horrific” outcomes.
Mac, from Sydney's Chris O'Brien Lifehouse, says McPherson probably bears no blame.
“Seven years is a good amount of time – but it's not a long time – so I think it's still uncertain and the jury's a bit out on whether there's going to be anything further for him, which I hope there isn't,” Mack told 7NEWS.
Health crusader Macpherson has also been criticised by cancer survivors, who say they are angry and hurt.
“It's infuriating. None of us have access to 32 doctors for advice,” said Patrice Capogreco.
'Incredibly irresponsible'
Cancer researcher Dr. David Robert Grimes called McPherson's decision “incredibly irresponsible.”
He said, “Holistic treatments are not a legitimate treatment for breast cancer. It is so highhanded that a millionaire with access to the best healthcare advises women to ignore medical advice. There is ample evidence of people dying from this nonsense.” X, formerly Twitter,
The Cancer Council said alternative therapies were “often promoted as cures for cancer” but they were “unproven” and had not been scientifically tested.
“They can cause harm or suffering to people who use them instead of conventional medical treatment. The Cancer Council does not recommend the use of alternative therapies,” The council said on its website,
Cancer surgeon Chris Pyke, director of medical services at Brisbane's Mater Private Hospitals, said: Guardian Lumpectomy, performed by McPherson, may be an appropriate treatment for this condition in some cases.
He said HER2-positive estrogen-receptive intraductal carcinoma can often be described as a type of non-invasive pre-cancer that can become invasive if left untreated.
“Intraductal means precancerous, so the cancer cells have formed, but they're still inside the ducts of the breast,” Pyke said.
“If left to their own devices, some of these cases will progress to invasive cancer by next year. But the number is not very high — about 5 percent. It's quite possible that simply removing the lump would have been sufficient treatment.”
— With reporting from Taylor Aiken
