Strictly Come Dancing professional Amy Dowden has revealed she was on the brink of abandoning her dance career after undergoing treatment for breast cancer. The Welsh dancer, who has been a fixture on the BBC show since 2017, was diagnosed with the disease in 2023.
Speaking on former Busted star Matt Willis’s podcast On The Mend, Dowden recounted the arduous journey of chemotherapy and two mastectomies, which forced her to step away from the show. She confessed that upon her return, she had "lost everything as a dancer, my flexibility, my speed – everything I worked 20 years for".
Dowden credited fellow professional Carlos Gu, who went on to win Strictly, for preventing her from giving up. "My body had been through everything so I knew I wasn’t who I was, and I was ready to hang up my dancing shoes and my husband and my dear friend, Carlos Gu... said ‘no’," she recounted. "‘Cancer’s taken so much, it’s not taking your dancing back. You can do this’."
Her profound love for dance reignited her determination. "I also knew how much I loved dance, and that spark, and the joy it was giving my family again, and the joy it gave me," she said, adding that she worked tirelessly to become "fit and strong and as happy as I possibly can be" to return to her passion. This culminated in her going "out on tour reborn".
The dancer also shared a poignant revelation, stating that her partnership with former McFly frontman Tom Fletcher in 2021 had inadvertently saved her life. Fletcher introduced her to his wife Giovanna’s work with breast cancer awareness charity CoppaFeel. "I have to admit, I’m going to have to be team McFly, because if it wasn’t for Tom Fletcher, I wouldn’t be alive," she told Willis.
Dowden is set to tour again this year with Gu, who supported her throughout her ordeal. While hoping to return to the Strictly dance floor, she remains committed to raising breast cancer awareness. "I still have treatment once a month on the oncology unit. I still must have a monthly injection, but it’s keeping me alive and that’s how I see it," she concluded.
The On The Mend With Matt Willis podcast is available now.
