Kylie Minogue shares second cancer battle in new Netflix documentary

Kylie Minogue has said she was diagnosed with cancer for a second time in early 2021, more than 15 years after her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in 2005. She spoke about the previously undisclosed diagnosis in the new three-part Netflix documentary Kylie.

In the documentary, Minogue said, “My second cancer diagnosis was in early 2021. I was able to keep that to myself Not like the first time.”

Referring to her treatment, she added, “Thankfully, I got through it. Again. And all is well. Hey, who knows what’s around the corner, but pop music nurtures me. My passion for music is greater than ever.”

Minogue said she found it difficult to decide when to speak publicly after her treatment, including after the success of her Grammy-winning 2023 single Padam Padam. “I don’t feel obliged to tell the world, and actually I just couldn’t at the time because I was just a shell of a person,” she said. “I didn’t want to leave the house again at one point. Padam Padam opened so many doors for me but on the inside I knew that cancer wasn’t just a blip in my life. And I really just wanted to say what happened so I can let go of it. I’d sit through interviews and every opportunity I thought, ‘now’s the time’, but I kept it to myself.”

She said her 2023 song Story, from the album Tension, reflected that period of her life, including the lyrics: “I had a secret that I kept to myself Turn another page, baby take the stage.” Minogue said of the song: “I needed to have something that marked that time.” In promotional material for the documentary, she said it was “my choice to share” the news and that the diagnosis came after a routine check-up. “There will be someone out there who will benefit from a gentle reminder to do their check ups Early detection was very helpful and I am so grateful to be able to say that I am well today,” she said.

Minogue was 36 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2005. She cancelled the rest of her Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour and withdrew from her Sunday headline slot on Glastonbury’s Pyramid stage to undergo treatment in Melbourne. Supporters including Elton John, Delta Goodrem and then Australian Prime Minister John Howard spoke publicly in her support, with Howard saying: “I think all Australians feel for her and wish her well.”

At the time, Minogue also faced intense media attention. That led Steve Bracks, then premier of Victoria, to remind paparazzi and journalists of harassment laws and of “strong laws, privacy laws around medical records, about access to details, about treatment: these are private matters between the clinician and the patient”. After treatment, Minogue was given the all-clear.

She returned to music with the 2007 album X, which produced the UK Top 10 singles 2 Hearts, Wow and In My Arms. She later returned to Glastonbury in 2019. She remained a major pop figure after that, with Padam Padam becoming her first UK Top 10 single since 2010 and winning a Grammy for best pop dance recording. In 2025, she scored a Christmas No 1 with Xmas, while the album Kylie Christmas (Fully Wrapped) also topped the charts.

The new documentary is directed by Michael Harte, who edited Netflix’s David Beckham documentary, and includes interviews with Minogue’s sister Dannii and former duet partners Jason Donovan and Nick Cave.