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Elle Halliwell: 'The poor life inside me living in this sick body. I thought it had no hope.'

Elle Halliwell has to be one of the bravest women we know.

In April, the 30-year-old fashion editor of the Daily Telegraph revealed she had fallen pregnant just 48 hours after being diagnosed with leukaemia.

Image via 60 Minutes.

She found herself at an impossible crossroads, forced to make one of the most gut-wrenching decisions a woman could make: Undergo the chemotherapy and risk her baby's life, or refuse treatment, and save the unborn child.

Elle Halliwell chose the latter.

Halliwell with her father (left), and husband Nick. Image via 60 Minutes.
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In an exclusive interview to be aired this Sunday, Elle told 60 Minutes:

“I just instantly thought this will kill me. Knowing that it had invaded every kind of area of your body, a blood cancer, felt so fatal.”

It's a journey Elle is taking alongside Nick, her husband, who described how much disbelief he felt when they found out the news.

“The first thing I thought is 'why her? Why can’t it be me?' It was terrible. Absolutely terrible.”

You can see a sneak peek of Elle's exclusive interview with 60 Minutes here: Post continues after video...

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 Following her diagnosis earlier this year, Halliwell penned a heartfelt essay:

"I was floating in a haze of Xanax and shock when the two little blue lines appeared on the pregnancy stick, confirming I was expecting my first child.”

She spoke to The Today Show in August. Post continues...

Elle and her husband Nick had decided to start planning for a baby, so Halliwell visited her GP to have her folate and Vitamin D levels checked. When her results showed an unusually high level of blood platelets, another test was taken. Two weeks later, the levels were even higher.

"The diagnosis came as a huge blow, as I had no symptoms," Elle wrote.

"If you walked past me in the street, or took a peek at my Instagram account, you wouldn’t believe I had an incurable disease.

"I’m not bruised, bald or lying in a hospital bed, which is an image many conjure up when they think of children and adults with leukaemia."

Now, the couple is embarking on a journey they never thought they would.

“I just thought, that poor life inside me living in this sick body. I thought it had no hope anyway," Elle told 60 Minutes.

"I've got so much support around me, so it makes it okay."

You can watch Elle Halliwell's full interview on 60 Minutes on Sunday at 8pm on Channel Nine.

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