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In a new documentary series about Kylie Minogue, the pop star has revealed that after her first bout with cancer, which received intense media coverage two decades ago, she was diagnosed again in 2021 – and this time too “got through again”.
“Luckily I did it again and everything is fine,” she said in the film, the BBC reported. “Who knows what’s around the corner, but pop music feeds me… my passion for music is greater than ever.” The three-part docuseries “Kylie” is now available on Netflix.
In May 2005, Minogue made it public that she had been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, which forced her to cancel concert dates. “Hopefully everything will turn out well and I’ll be back with you soon,” she said at the time. That same month, it was revealed that she was recovering from surgery and her doctor had deemed the procedure a success. It is not known whether her second illness was also breast cancer.
The diagnosis was kept secret for a long time
In the documentary series Kylie, Minogue describes how difficult it was for her to find the right time to talk about her second diagnosis – even as she was promoting her 2023 album Tension. “I don’t feel obligated to tell the world about it and to be honest I just couldn’t at the time because I was just an empty shell,” Minogue said in the docuseries, according to the BBC. “There was a point where I didn’t want to leave the house.”
“’Padam Padam’ [die Single aus ‚Tension‘] “It opened so many doors for me, but inside I knew that cancer wasn’t a blip in my life,” she continued. “And I just wanted to say what happened so I could let it go. I sat in interviews and thought at every opportunity, ‘Now is the moment’ – but I kept it to myself.”
She’s talking about it now, she explained, to encourage people to get regular checkups – because that’s exactly how her doctors discovered her condition. “Early detection was crucial and I am so grateful to be able to say today that I am doing well,” she said. Minogue’s public handling of her first diagnosis prompted many women, especially in Australia, to get checked – a phenomenon the BBC calls the “Kylie effect”.
IVF before chemotherapy
In the documentary, Minogue also revealed that she had initially postponed treatment the first time around so she could undergo IVF treatment. Going without chemotherapy was “very scary,” she said. She was finally declared cancer-free in 2008.
In 2013, Minogue told Rolling Stone that she hoped her story as a cancer survivor could encourage other sufferers. “I realized that there was a lot of courage in my story – also in that of the people around me: my parents, my brother and sister, my other family, my friends and of course my own,” she said at the time. She received the Courage Award at an event in aid of the EIF’s Women’s Cancer Research Fund. “I am very honored to receive this award and I can only accept it on behalf of all those who have already experienced or are currently experiencing this fate – because you really have to go deep within yourself.”
“Kylie” was directed by Michael Harte, who also directed the Michael J. Fox film “Still.” Those interviewed include Minogue’s sister Dannii Minogue, actor and singer Jason Donovan, who was once in a relationship with Minogue, Nick Cave and music producer Peter Waterman.
