‘Babe’ Star Magda Szubanski Gives Emotional Update on Living With an Incurable Cancer Relapse

For more than a year, Magda Szubanski has kept fans updated on one of the toughest chapters of her life, sharing both the fear and the small victories that came with facing a rare blood cancer. The beloved Australian actress has approached the journey with the same candor and humor that made her a household name decades earlier.

That openness has resonated deeply with audiences who’ve followed every step of her treatment, from the initial diagnosis through months of grueling chemotherapy. Few celebrities have been quite this transparent about what recovery, and uncertainty, actually look like behind the scenes.

Now Szubanski has offered her most detailed update yet. Speaking during her first major interview since revealing her diagnosis, the actress explained that her recent remission is what she calls an “incurable relapse in cancer,” meaning the disease is expected to return at some point despite the encouraging progress so far.

“So, it’s almost sure that it will come back. It’s a question of when and then how bad,” Szubanski told host Tracy Grimshaw, in an interview aired on Nine’s ’60 Minutes.’

Szubanski, 65, was diagnosed with stage four mantle cell lymphoma in May 2025, a rare and fast-moving form of blood cancer. She first announced the diagnosis publicly on social media, describing the disease as serious while noting she had begun one of the most effective available treatments, known as the Nordic protocol.

In February, she shared the news that she had completed chemotherapy and entered remission, offering fans a moment of relief after months of uncertainty. During her latest interview, however, she was careful to clarify that remission does not equal a cure, given the nature of her specific diagnosis.

She also discussed the statistical reality she now lives with. “The median survival rate is eight-and-a-half years. So, I could go less, or I could go more,” she said, before adding with characteristic humor that she planned to “pitch for more.”

Szubanski also opened up about the unsettling signs that first alerted her that something was wrong, describing physical discomfort severe enough to disrupt her sleep. “I knew something was wrong. I just felt so unwell,” she said. “It would wake me up in the middle of the night, literally wake up with my dream voice saying, ‘You’re dying, you’re dying.'”

Her diagnosis was ultimately discovered during a routine breast cancer screening, when doctors noticed her lymph nodes were swollen, prompting further testing that confirmed mantle cell lymphoma. That detail has added weight to her earlier public message encouraging others to take unusual symptoms seriously and seek medical attention when something feels off.

Best known for her role as Sharon Strzelecki in ‘Kath & Kim,’ as well as her performances in ‘Babe’ and ‘Happy Feet,’ Szubanski has spent decades as one of Australia’s most recognized and well-liked television personalities. That long-standing public profile has made her openness about this diagnosis resonate even more broadly, both in Australia and internationally.

Her willingness to describe her prognosis in such direct terms, rather than offering a simplified narrative of recovery, has struck a chord with many following her story closely. For a public figure with her level of visibility, that kind of honesty offers a rare and grounded look at what living with an incurable illness actually involves.

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