Kellie Finlayson has been candidly sharing her fight with stage four bowel cancer since her shock diagnosis in 2021, just three months after welcoming her daughter Sophia.
The 29-year-old revealed in 2022 that the cancer had spread to her lungs, and despite a brief reprieve when the disease became inactive, test results in June 2024 showed it had returned, per the Daily Mail.
Over the years, she has undergone thoracic surgery, countless treatments, and remains in active care today.
Social media speculation sparks frustration
Finlayson regularly updates her 73,500 Instagram followers with glimpses into her life — from glamorous red-carpet appearances to family time, travel, and career milestones.
But her appearance has also led some online commenters to wrongly suggest she was “fine.”
Addressing speculation this week, she made her position crystal clear.
“Also fam, not that I should need to confirm this but I am very much still living with a stage four diagnosis and in the thick of active treatment,” she wrote on Instagram.
“Daily chemotherapy on top of three weekly infusions, with a side of surgery here and there.
“I’ve heard so much noise and read so many misleading comments lately that suggest I’ve been, quote, ‘fine’ for over 18 months now."
Finalyson continued: “While I understand that I look well, I do that on purpose. I am the queen of tricking my own mind into believing it too.
“I show up on here in all of my hats, I’m a mum, wife, author, keynote speaker, teacher, advocate and of course, living with cancer. It’s not, and never has been, the only part of me.
“I’ve never let it consume me entirely and while the beginning was a little scarier, I’m still very much in the exact same position.”
She later added a short note at the bottom of her story: “Reminder today, to be kind and unassuming.”
On another occasion, after attending an awards ceremony, she captioned a treatment-day update from the oncology ward with: “lol my life is wild.”
Comparisons to Belle Gibson left her furious
Earlier this year, Finlayson revealed that she had been compared to disgraced wellness influencer Belle Gibson, who was fined in 2017 for misleading conduct, per News.com.au.
The Sh!t Talkers podcast host said: “Having these docos and this Netflix series come out about all of the hurt she caused, all of the lies she told … and then being referred to her as her name simply because I’ve sought alternate therapies, or I look really well … but being called this woman’s name is offensive – it’s abusive almost.”
“Having gone through the things that she described … or pretended to have gone through and the way she manipulated people around her to empathise and to give her so much … it makes me physically ill.”
Skin problems and unseen side effects
In October 2024, Finlayson told news.com.au that she faced serious physical changes and ongoing complications due to treatment.
She said she had a stoma bag, lost a “sh*t tonne” of weight and had her hair fall out. But while promoting skincare brand FUCA, she explained that some of the most difficult challenges were unexpected.
“Initially, it was in the parts where I was getting radiated, which was expected. I was told that was going to happen in terms of the skin drying out or being more sensitive to certain things — or even just wiping my bum to be honest, cause that’s where I was radiated,” she said.
“In the end, it ended up being sensitivity to the sun and that was my whole body obviously, but more so sensitive in already sensitive areas such as elbows, wrists and face.”
She added that her normal outward appearance delayed public recognition of how serious things were: “It was more so behind close doors that I saw the effects of everything — like scars aren’t visible often. My hair didn’t fall out until 18 months later when I relapsed.
“My appearance was really normal to those around me, so I was almost able to convince myself that I was normal as well. It was definitely behind closed doors that I was dealing with the superficial symptoms of the diagnosis.
“But, at the time, I was trying to manage the best I could for my own sake.”
Turning hardship into purpose
Beyond treatments, Finlayson has tried to build meaning out of her diagnosis. On the Jess Rowe Big Talk Show podcast’s Safe Space series, she explained how she found strength in her mindset.
“It completely comes from mindset,” she said.
“I feel like I still live each day the same as I used to, if not with more life, if that makes sense.
“I turned a really s***ty situation into a pretty incredible one and a really powerful one with a lot of purpose.”
In April, she published her book There Must Be More: Finding Purpose In The Face Of The Unimaginable, reflecting on her journey with stage four cancer and the lessons she’s drawn from it.
She is also an ambassador for the Jodie Lee Foundation, a not-for-profit focused on raising awareness about bowel cancer.
Returning to the classroom
Even with her ongoing treatment, Finlayson recently celebrated a major milestone — returning to teaching after a three-year break.
Posting a photo of herself in her work clothes, she captioned it: “First day back on the tools in three years.”