Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has revealed that her family sought legal advice after doctors dismissed her symptoms before her Crohn's disease diagnosis. The dancer, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023 and now shows "no evidence of disease", has returned to compete on the BBC programme alongside celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton, 43. She continues to manage the chronic inflammatory bowel condition.
Years of Misdiagnosis
Amy finally received her Crohn's diagnosis at 19, following years of enduring excruciating pain, sickness, exhaustion, and countless hospital admissions since childhood. During an appearance on The Lewis Nicholls Show podcast, Amy remembered the exasperation she and her family experienced when her symptoms were brushed aside by one doctor, who suggested she should "go and eat a Mars bar" after mistakenly believing she had an eating disorder.
The absence of proper medical support became so severe that Amy's father Richard considered taking legal action. Recalling her mother Gillian's devastating response, the Strictly favourite revealed: "I can remember my mum burst into tears in that appointment and I was so ill, I was just in shock and I just wanted answers. And then my mum said, 'well, if that's what you think, you need to treat her for that then, she needs help', and they didn't."
Breaking Point in Hospital
She continued: "And I can remember just breaking down in tears, and then when I was 19, I was that poorly, I was in hospital and I was at absolute... I was so ill. I don't think, except from when I had sepsis, that I've ever been this ill in my life and they ended up calling my parents at about three o'clock in the morning and I said, 'I can't do this anymore'."
"And they came down to the hospital, and the nurses said how poorly I was, and then my dad saw the doctor and he was just like, 'we can't take this anymore, we're going to seek legal advice, you're not doing anything'. And my dad was like, 'this is not my little girl anymore. If this was your daughter, you wouldn't have it."
Diagnosis and Relief
After her father's candid exchange with the medic, Amy was moved to UCL London having spent six weeks in hospital without any answers. Her fresh consultant then "took one look at me, listened to some of my symptoms, and said, 'I can't confirm it but I think you've got Crohn's disease'."
Amy explained the "relief" that both she and her loved ones experienced upon finally receiving a diagnosis, as she could then access the surgery and care required to "finally get on with my life", and chase her ambition of becoming a dancer. She continued: "My parents and I were just so upset because we didn't feel like doctors were listening to us. I think they saw a skinny dancer and thought, 'she's anorexic', and actually, I do eat, that wasn't the issue at all."
Despite her trauma, Amy revealed that her battle with Crohn's disease provided her with "resilience" in life, and even supported her when she was subsequently diagnosed with cancer. The Welsh dancer confessed: "It [cancer] was also, in some respect, easier for me, because I'd already been through so many tests from a young age; long hospital stays, injections, infusions, that none of that was new to me."
