Former X Factor Star Amber Woods Sets the Record Straight With Candid Cancer Update After Misdiagnosis
Months after doctors dismissed her symptoms as acid reflux, former X Factor Malta contestant Amber Woods, 25, learned she has stage 4 pancreatic cancer — now she’s pursuing treatment and using her platform to raise awareness.
If you watched X Factor Malta back in the day, you might remember Amber Woods (she went by Amber Fisher at the time) belting it out on stage. Well, life after TV has thrown her an absolutely brutal curveball: at just 25, Amber has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. And honestly, her story is as maddening as it is heartbreaking.
From 'Just Acid Reflux' to a Devastating Diagnosis
After graduating college last spring, Amber started feeling… off. We're not talking about a little heartburn or post-grad blues here: she was dealing with constant acid reflux, shortness of breath, bloating—the kind of stuff that makes you Google your symptoms at 2am. So she went to the doctor. Over and over. And every time, they sent her home, basically telling her she was young and healthy, and she should stop worrying.
'I really don’t feel like this is normal,' Amber told People. (And no, it was not normal.) It took nearly eight months—and, honestly, an exhausting amount of self-advocacy—before the real culprit was found.
Eight Months Later: The Real (Terrifying) Diagnosis
Late December 2025, Amber lands back in the hospital—this time, the situation got serious enough that doctors finally started running more tests. First, they suspected pregnancy (classic), then maybe liver parasites—until the test results came in and everything turned upside down.
Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. It had already spread to her liver. The news was immediate and completely overwhelming:
"I’m in shock. What do you mean? This can’t be right," Amber remembers telling doctors, surrounded by a terrified family.
After that, her mom essentially hit the panic button and got a second opinion at Stanford. There, oncologist Dr. Shruti Patel took over, whose whole approach gave Amber a bit of optimism amid all the fear.
Life Now: Treatments, Side Effects, and the Unseen Details
Amber is now on chemo pills, which come with the greatest hits that cancer patients know all too well—nausea, fatigue, constipation (because apparently your misery level can always go up). It’ll be a few months before she and her doctors know if the treatment is actually working.
Until then, she’s keeping herself as busy and positive as possible, which includes a lot of things you wouldn’t expect from a former reality TV contestant:
- Taking what she calls 'blood clot walks,' since she’s got a clot in her portal vein and, worst of all, sitting still could actually make things worse.
- Running a dedicated Instagram account and sharing updates on TikTok, inviting people into the day-to-day reality of living with advanced cancer.
- Writing music—even now, she's still making art—and fundraising for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.
Genetics, Awareness, and Why This Story Matters
Here’s something you probably didn’t see coming: doctors discovered Amber actually has Lynch syndrome, which put her at higher risk for certain cancers (pancreatic included). If you take one thing from this story, it might be this—knowing your family’s medical history isn’t just for morbid curiosity. Amber’s using her platform to shout about early detection and the realities that get missed when younger patients are told they’re 'too healthy' for something serious.
With all of this going on, Amber’s focus is crystal clear: keep fighting, stay creative, and make sure even one person out there gets diagnosed earlier than she did.
If you want to see what she’s up to—and, honestly, if you want a sometimes-raw, totally honest look at what this fight actually looks like—you can follow her on social media. It’s heavy, yeah, but it’s also real, and that’s why it’s worth talking about.