Australian supermodel Elle Macpherson has revealed she went against the advice of 32 doctors and forged her own treatment path after being diagnosed with breast cancer.

The 60-year-old has spoken for the first time about her secret battle seven years ago, which she reveals in her new memoir Elle: Life, Lessons, and Learning to Trust Yourself.

In an interview with Australian Women’s Weekly, the mum of two said deciding to take a holistic approach to fighting cancer was “the hardest thing I have ever done”.

She recounted how she was diagnosed after having a lumpectomy at age 53.

Her doctor suggested a mastectomy with radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, plus reconstruction of her breast.

“It was a shock, it was unexpected, it was confusing, it was daunting in so many ways,” she told the magazine.

“It really gave me an opportunity to dig deep in my inner sense to find a solution that worked for me.

“It was a wonderful exercise in being true to myself, trusting myself and trusting the nature of my body and the course of action that I had chosen.”

The model instead opted for “an intuitive, heart-led, holistic approach” to treating her cancer that used a “combination of therapies and lifestyle changes to treat and heal the whole person”.

Macpherson relocated for eight months to Phoenix, Arizona, where she rented a house and focused on her natural healing journey.

“Saying no to standard medical solutions was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” she said.

“But saying no to my own inner sense would have been even harder.”

Elle Macpherson admits people thought she was ‘crazy’. Photo: Getty

In her book Macpherson, who rose to fame in the 1980s appearing in magazines such as Sports Illustrated and Playboy, says her non-pharmaceutical approach is not for everyone.

“I came to the understanding that there was no sure thing and absolutely no guarantees. There was no ‘right’ way, just the right way for me”, she writes, according to Women’s Weekly.

“Sometimes an authentic choice from the heart makes no sense to others … but it doesn’t have to.

“People thought I was crazy but I knew I had to make a choice that truly resonated with me.

“To me, that meant addressing emotional as well as physical factors associated with breast cancer.

“It was time for deep, inner reflection. And that took courage.”

Macpherson, who shares two sons, Flynn, 26, and Cy, 21, with former partner, Arpad Busson, revealed her decision caused some tension in the family.

“Cy simply thought that chemo kills you. And so he never wanted me to do it because he thought that was a kiss of death,” she said.

“Flynn, being more conventional, wasn’t comfortable with my choice at all. He is my son, though, and would support me through anything and love me through my choices, even if he didn’t agree with them.”

Reflecting on her current health, Macpherson said: “In traditional terms, they’d say I’m in clinical remission, but I would say I’m in utter wellness. And I am.

“Truly, from every perspective, every blood test, every scan, every imaging test … but also emotionally, spiritually and mentally — not only physically.

“It’s not only what your blood tests say, it’s how and why you are living your life on all levels.”

-with AAP