Was Elle Macpherson right to refuse chemo?

And who is taking medical advice from a supermodel anyway?

Elle Macpherson by Gilles Bensimon

I was planning to return to your inbox next week, fresh and ready for September - ten days into September, which is the kind of late-for-school energy I like to bring.

But this week, everyone with even the vaguest interest in breast cancer is talking about Elle Macpherson, so I thought I’d chime in with my take on the matter.

In case you’ve missed this story, the supermodel (who is now 60, yes 60) has revealed that she had breast cancer seven years ago and chose not to have chemotherapy.

The response on social media has been that of outrage: how dare she eschew conventional treatment? And how irresponsible, because others might copy her!

I have a more measured view, which I wrote about in today’s Times.

First of all, please know that I would not take medical advice from Elle Macpherson. Not only is she the founder of a wellness supplement brand, but also she was in a relationship with disgraced anti-vaxxer and medical conspiracy theorist Andrew Wakefield. …