Kylie Minogue has opened up about her secret second breast cancer diagnosis in 2021 and her heartbreaking IVF journey in her new Netflix documentary series
Kylie Minogue has disclosed that she battled and conquered breast cancer for a second time in 2021, having previously defeated the illness back in 2005.
Yet unlike the first occasion — when her devastating diagnosis was made public within days due to her being mid-way through a world tour — this time Kylie chose to keep the entire episode completely private.
"I was able to keep that to myself and go through that year, not like the first time," she says tearfully. "I've been trying to find the right time to say it - I just couldn't at the time. I was just a shell of a person.
" In 2023, the pop icon was delighted when her Grammy-winning track Padam Padam "opened so many doors for me", yet admitted feeling uncomfortable concealing the enormous health struggle she had been enduring behind closed doors. "On the inside I knew that the cancer wasn't just a blip in my life and I really just needed to say what happened so I could let go of it.
" She makes the disclosure in the third episode of her brand-new Netflix documentary series Kylie. When subsequently asked why the moment felt right to speak out, the singer described it as feeling "important" to be candid.
"Thankfully I got through it again and all is well," she explains. "Making this documentary has meant looking back at so many pivotal moments in my life and this was another one. I also know there will be someone out there who will benefit from a gentle reminder to do their check-ups.
"As part of my routine check-ups in 2021, I was diagnosed with a second primary breast cancer. Early detection was very helpful and I am so grateful to be able to say that I am well today.
" One of her ways of coping was to compose a song about her experience, Story, alongside long-standing collaborator Richard "Biff" Stannard. Stating she required "something to mark it", Kylie, 57, said: "When I started writing Story I knew one day I would share what the meaning behind the song was. Finding the right time to do so was tricky.
I didn't imagine it would be in a documentary but perhaps it found its own time and place", reports the Mirror. Sending a message to those feeling hesitant about attending hospital appointments following a cancer diagnosis, she implored: "I get it; you just want to move on and put it in the past or park it to the side. But, check-ups are incredibly important.
It can be daunting and triggering but please be mindful of just how vital they are - and reach out for help if you need it, you're not alone.
" Her initial diagnosis came in 2005, when she was eager to start a family with her then-boyfriend, French actor Olivier Martinez. In episode three, she speaks openly about her choice to postpone chemotherapy in order to undergo IVF treatment. She sighs: "There's so much more to cancer than you had it, you got through it and you're fine - or fine for now.
I was 36 when I got my diagnosis so already it's - you need to be thinking about children.
" On the topic of motherhood - which she frequently mentioned as a goal throughout the years - she now reflects: "I did try. I even postponed my chemotherapy to try - which was quite scary at the time because you just want it out. Gone. I want to feel safe, I don't want this.
But yeah, I did try a few times with IVF, always it was with such a thread of hope. But I couldn't not try.
"If it had happened it would have been just shy of a miracle. But it didn't work out that way. One can't help but wonder what it would have been like - I'm so close to my family. But it wasn't my path.
" In the documentary, Kylie even reads out some words she wrote in a letter to the baby "that might have been". "Distant child, my flower, are you blowing in the breeze? " she wonders. "Can you feel me as I breathe life into you, wrapped in a blanket of hope, asleep on a bed of dreams?
My step into eternity is not what it might have been. Or not at all - for who knows which way the wind is going to blow? I'm waiting for your whisper.
" Contemplating Kylie's profound longing for children, her sister appears devastated on camera as she considers how wonderful the singer is with her nephews, including Danni's own 15-year-old son. "I never saw myself as a parent," she confesses. "And she always did. That's heartbreaking.
" Dannii also reveals she would have done anything to make the cancer disappear in 2005. "I remember saying, if I could chop off one of my arms now and this could all go away, I would. I just felt so helpless.
" Having relocated to Paris for her chemotherapy, Kylie recalls a pivotal moment arriving when she gazed out of the window at the Eiffel Tower as its lights began to twinkle. "I thought 'Oh, she's sparkling for me! ' And I thought 'I'm not finished. This is not where I want to say goodbye'.
" Once treatment concluded and Kylie's strength gradually started to return, she was resolute in her determination to complete the world tour she had embarked upon. "I wanted to feel able again," she explains. "But it wasn't easy, I felt so drained. I felt like my body was a battleground.
" The second diagnosis sheds light on why Kylie departed the UK for Australia towards the close of 2021, settling in Melbourne. She is unequivocal that her parents and siblings have been an enduring source of support throughout her life. This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it.
Learn more Free Netflix subscription Watch Netflix hits like Beef season 2 for free Sky is giving away a free Netflix subscription with its new Sky Stream TV bundles, including the £15 Essential TV plan. This lets customers watch live and on-demand TV content without a satellite dish or aerial and includes the new season of Beef. from £15 Sky Get the deal here "I was saved - I really was," she says simply.
"Of course, you learn what resilience means and what love means. Having had cancer one important thing to know is - you're still the same person. I remember coming out at the other end and feeling more like myself than ever before.
" She has kept cards and messages from supporters, sent from across the globe, stored in a box. "Those letters, in pretty dark moments, they meant so much. " The documentary also chronicles how, after being forced to withdraw from the Glastonbury Festival due to her breast cancer in 2005, she eventually reached the Pyramid stage in 2019, where she attracted one of the largest crowds ever recorded. Reflecting on the experience, she admits she was extremely anxious.
"I was terrified it would be like Spinal Tap," she laughs. Ultimately, it proved a resounding success.
"It was such a wave of love," she says. "I had so much goodness from so many people who had willed me to reach that stage. " And contemplating that career-defining moment, she proclaims: "I think I might have done it. Little Kylie got there.
" Her close friend and musical collaborator Nick Cave explains why she commands such affection worldwide. "Her connection with the audience, it's not phoney," he says. "It is very real to her - it's a true form of love. " Considering what lies ahead, Kylie reveals she intends to adopt a slightly more relaxed approach, but acknowledges she can seldom manage more than three days without contemplating work.
"Hey, who knows what is around the corner? " she reasons. "But pop music nurtures me. Pop can elate you, it can soothe you, it can be a type of salvation for some people.
My passion for music is greater than ever. " KYLIE is now available to stream on Netflix.
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