A British man who was diagnosed with colon cancer like Married at First Sight star Mel Schilling has shared the six strange things that happened to him before he was given the devastating news.

Popular dating coach Mel died at the age of 54 this week after her battle with colon cancer. She was diagnosed in 2023 after she began experiencing severe stomach cramps.

Jon Imondi, 44, who is from Worcester, has now spoken out about the symptoms he faced before eventually getting checked, in the hopes of encouraging others not to take any chances like he did.

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Reacting to Mel’s death, he said: “When I saw the news I was naturally sad. I always am when someone else loses their life so young and before their time.

“I’m still in Facebook bowel cancer groups and always see posts from husbands and wives sharing that their loved ones have passed. But honestly my reaction is always the same — how come some survive and others don’t?

“How lucky I am to have survived. Did it really happen to me and we really need to talk more about prevention.”

This leads us into the six odd things that happened to his body — which he admitted to ignoring for “far too long”.

He said odd things happened for around eight months before he finally went to his GP. The first was much more frequent and wetter stools and he said he rarely felt like he’d been emptied.

Second was fatigue, where he felt exhausted by 4pm after work every day.

Thirdly, he remembered: “I dismissed blood in the toilet about 12 months before my diagnosis.”

Sign number four was that his face and stomach were both bloated while his fifth warning was IBS symptoms which he was suffering on and off for several months.

He said that was a “really telling sign” and as for the last one, he added: “My immune system was shot! A few weeks before my diagnosis I developed a shingles rash and a chest infection. My body was trying to fight for its life.”

Jon, who had been working as an IT engineer, eventually went to his GP where blood in his stool samples were discovered.

He underwent a colonoscopy but it failed after the camera was blocked by a tumour which was later revealed to be cancerous.

He was diagnosed with stage three bowel cancer in December 2022 and was “extremely lucky” with the timing.

That’s because it was feared the tumour was about to break free from his colon and spread to his liver — which would have meant stage four.

Jon had keyhole surgery to remove the tumour and part of his colon and he told us he is now cancer free.

He has Lynch Syndrome, a genetic condition that increases the chances of getting bowel cancer and other cancers, and he has annual and biannual CT scans and colonscopies. Jon also has blood tests taken every three months to make sure he is still cancer free.

And in a message to readers, Jon, who said he is now healthier and happier than ever, said: “No matter how small or insignificant your symptoms — get checked out.

“Don’t feel like a burden or that you’re wasting anyone’s time because you’re not — this is your life so live it as best you can.”

And Jon, who quit his IT corporate life to build his own therapy business, added: “And if you ever do get a diagnosis, listen to your body, nourish it, take care of it, move and feed it with plenty of fruits and vegetables.

“Life is precious, fleeting and we never know what’s around the corner.”