- Lifestyle
Millie Mackintosh faced an anxious wait following an inconclusive biopsy and an MRI scan
Lisa SalmonThursday 27 November 2025 10:17 GMT
CloseMillie Mackintosh makes vow following breast cancer scare
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Millie Mackintosh has opened up about the “nerve-racking” journey she endured after discovering a lump in her breast.
The scare ultimately led to a vow to raise awareness for women's health.
The former Made in Chelsea star, now 36, faced an anxious wait for results following an inconclusive biopsy and an MRI scan.
“Waiting for the results for a couple of weeks was really a nerve-racking, scary time,” the mother-of-two recounted.
“I vowed to myself that if I got the all-clear, I’d help women who get cancer, and to raise awareness for checking themselves and not just thinking breast cancer is something that happens to women in their 40s or 50s.”
She emphasised the critical importance of early detection and body familiarity.
“You need to be really familiar with your body and breasts and check yourself from a young age, so you know what your normal feels like, and aren’t scared to get that check, because it’s ignoring it and delaying that makes it so much more dangerous.”
Fortunately, Mackintosh received the all-clear 18 months ago, with doctors confirming the lump was a hormonal issue linked to her monthly cycle.
But although she didn’t have cancer herself, the traumatic experience made her determined to fulfil her vow to help others who did have cancer.
She signed up for a trek of more than 100km through the Sahara Desert to raise money and awareness for the youth-focused breast cancer charity CoppaFeel!
Mackintosh, who is married to fellow Made in Chelsea star Hugo Taylor, has just returned to the UK after spending five days trekking through the scorching Moroccan Sahara.
She undertook the trek with broadcaster Ashley James, drag queen Bimini, actress and singer Carrie Hope Fletcher and actress and author Giovanna Fletcher, alongside more than 120 CoppaFeel! supporters.
open image in galleryFrom left, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Millie Mackintosh, Giovanna Fletcher, Ashley James and Bimini in the Sahara“I did some training, but nothing can really prepare you for trekking in those conditions, and camping,” Mackintosh, who was a trek team leader, admits.
“It was quite out of my comfort zone, and I’m so, so glad I did it. It was life-changing – honestly, I think everyone should experience doing a challenge like that.”
On some days the team trekked for eight hours, and Mackintosh says: “It was really challenging – you could see the camp in the distance, and it just felt like it wasn’t getting closer. Walking across this huge plateau, the tents in the distance were like a mirage.
“And then we were trekking in the dark, which I wasn’t a big fan of. But we all grouped together with our head torches on, and we just got each other through it.
“Being part of the team, and that connection with other people all coming together to help each other, was one of my favourite parts.”
Although Mackintosh and many of the other trekkers battled painful blisters on their feet during the walk, the hardest part of the experience for the mum was being apart from her two young daughters – Sienna, aged five, and four-year-old Aurelia – and not being able to contact them because there was no phone signal for much of the trek.
open image in galleryMillie Mackintosh’s trek group“I missed them so much,” she laments.
“That was probably the hardest thing, with not having a phone signal. It was nice to take a break and not be on the internet all the time, to help my mind have a bit of a digital detox, but it was not being able to just send a message home or receive one, not knowing how the girls were, that I found really difficult.”
Fortunately, the separation wasn’t for long, and Hugo and the girls flew to Marrakech to meet Mackintosh at the end of the trek.
“They came to Marrakech because it was Aurelia’s fourth birthday,” says the proud mum.
“So they came out for a long weekend and celebrated her birthday – it was really emotional.”
Now she’s back in colder climes, Mackintosh’s next milestone is the publication of the paperback version of her book, Bad Drunk, in January.
The book, written with GP Dr Ellie Cannon, combines practical, scientific advice with Mackintosh’s personal experience of giving up alcohol three-and-a-half years ago after realising drinking too much was affecting her health and wellbeing.
