Breast cancer at 27: Chef Maddy blames her nagging back pain on long hours in the kitchen. Now she has just 12 months to live

A young chef who thought her severe back pain was due to long hours in the kitchen has been told she could have just 12 months to live after receiving a shocking diagnosis.

Mediana ‘Maddy’ Bouchard had been struggling with back pain for years, but she did what most twenty-somethings would do: she popped a Panadol and got on with her life.

“I thought I was healthy because I was working 70 to 80 hours a week. When I started having back pain, I ignored it because I thought it was from overuse,” Maddy told Daily Mail Australia.

When she felt a ‘visible’ lump in her breast, she didn’t think anything was suspicious because she was ‘too young to have cancer’.

The chef was living a seemingly normal life in Sydney, having landed her dream job in a five-star restaurant when she noticed her chronic back pain was getting worse.

But after three months of suffering, she knew something was seriously wrong.

Her GP ignored her symptoms, so she switched to another doctor who immediately referred her for a CT scan, ultrasound, mammogram and biopsy.

When Maddy was just 27, she was diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer, which was expected to end her life after the disease spread to her lungs, liver and bones.

Mediana ‘Maddy’ Bouchard struggled with back pain for years, but did what most young people in their twenties would do: take a Panadol and get on with their lives

The chef was living a seemingly normal life in Sydney, having landed her dream job in a five-star restaurant when she noticed her chronic back pain was getting worse.

At age 27, Maddy was diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer

“It felt like my life was flashing before my eyes,” she explains.

“But I’m determined to make the last year of my life worth it. No more ‘laters’ and ‘what ifs’… I just want to do everything here and now.”

A year before she was diagnosed with shock, Maddy, who has lived in Australia for more than 10 years after moving from Indonesia in 2013, noticed a lump in her right breast but assumed it was nothing serious.

As she worked her way up in the culinary world, she was promoted to chef de partie and was in charge of the restaurant’s kitchen.

Working for a large hotel chain, she had to move from one kitchen to another regularly, meaning she was on her feet all day, from 10pm to 6am.

“I had just started my dream job and was working as a chef, so I didn’t want anything to come in between,” she explains.

‘There aren’t many chefs willing to work night shifts, so I only worked nights because I was in high demand.

‘But gradually I started to feel pain in my back… The stabbing pain got worse when I woke up, I had to roll onto my stomach and slowly get up from that position.’

She had been suffering from back pain for years, but the symptom was dismissed as a hernia.

The chef was living a seemingly normal life until she was told she might only have 12 months to live

X-rays show that the cancer has spread beyond the breast to other organs in her body

She took Panadol and had weekly massages to relieve the pain, but nothing seemed to help.

“The pain didn’t go away, so I thought it was weird,” she said.

The pain in her back became so ‘unbearable’ that she had difficulty concentrating on her work.

“Eventually I couldn’t take the pain anymore, so I went to the doctor,” she said.

‘I first went to a female GP who ignored my concerns and pleas to have a mammogram, so I switched to my current GP who has been a godsend.

“He listened to me and immediately ordered a CT scan, ultrasound and mammogram. That’s expensive without Medicare, but I’m glad I did it.”

When tests revealed abnormal cells in her cells, her doctor referred her for a biopsy. In November 2023, she was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer.

“I had mixed emotions. I cried and screamed when my GP told me I had breast cancer,” Maddy said.

‘I had seen the lump for a year, but I didn’t really know it was breast cancer. I thought only old people could get it, because I was young.’

She was told the cancerous lump in her breast was the size of a golf ball, measuring 5.5cm in diameter.

Maddy said she’s cherishing each day as it comes – and is determined to live life to the fullest

Doctors estimate she had developed the cancer since she was 24.

Her whole world came crashing down when her oncologist told her she probably only had 12 to 24 months to live.

“My oncologist was not optimistic,” she explained.

‘I have to be positive about it, otherwise I will lose the battle against my mind.’

Because the cancer has spread from her breast to other organs in her body, Maddy says chemotherapy and radiation therapy are her only treatment options.

“Surgery was ruled out because the cancer had already spread. I have had three rounds of chemotherapy and one round of radiotherapy so far. The doctors are optimistic that the treatments will prolong my life,” she said.

‘My last scan confirmed that the cancer was responding well to the chemo and my doctor said the cancer in my breast had shrunk a little, which is good.’

Maddy says she has had to dip into her savings and pension funds to pay her high medical bills.

“Given the circumstances, I can claim my pension earlier,” she said.

Maddy pictured after chemo. She lost her hair, eyebrows, eyelashes and all her body hair.

Her family have travelled to Sydney to support her as she battles cancer.

“My family had to stay with me to take care of me because I couldn’t take care of myself. It was so painful to move and I was nauseous all the time,” she said.

‘At first I couldn’t wash myself. I was in so much pain that my sister had to stay up in the middle of the night to massage me.’

Just weeks after her cancer diagnosis, she found herself back in the hospital, fighting for her life. She developed pneumonia, a chest infection that attacks the tiny air sacs in the lungs.

“I was in the emergency room after nearly dying from pneumonia,” she said.

Maddy stopped chemotherapy a few months ago so she could try alternative therapies.

“There’s no harm in trying anything to save my life,” she said.

“Now I’m on 150mg of morphine twice a day, along with other medications. Plus buprenorphine painkillers. Just to keep my pain under control, because pain is what I struggle with the most.”

With her savings running low, Maddy has started a GoFundMe page in hopes of raising money for her ongoing medical bills.

“I had to stop working to focus on my recovery, so right now I have no income to pay the bills,” she said.

“I hope I can win this battle.”

Just weeks after her cancer diagnosis, she found herself back in the hospital – fighting for her life after contracting pneumonia, a type of chest infection that attacks the tiny air sacs in the lungs.

Maddy said she has always wanted to be a doctor and hopes she can survive her cancer treatment.

“I hope that one day I can go back to school to become a doctor so that after I beat this cancer, I can help find a cure for cancer,” she said.

Warning signs

She hopes that by sharing her story, Australians can look out for the early warning signs, such as unusual lumps, sudden weight loss, fatigue or loss of appetite.

“Look out for any unusual lumps on the breast and in the chest area, any unexplained pain that doesn’t go away. It doesn’t hurt to go to the doctor and ask for more tests,” she said.

‘Before my diagnosis I also suffered from sudden weight loss, fatigue and loss of appetite. If I had seen the warning signs early I could have received the necessary treatments.’

Most people with early-stage breast cancer can be treated successfully.

Maddy says that for now she is just enjoying each day as it comes and is determined to live life to the fullest.

“I want to keep fighting despite all the adversity,” she said.

If you would like to make a donation, please find Maddy’s GoFundMe in the bullet point.