Copyright Newsweek
An influencer has taken to social media in a tearful video to address the claims that she faked a cancer diagnosis in 2017. Brittany Miller, 29, from Oxfordshire, in the U.K., shared a video on TikTok (@brittanyhmiller) to her 3.5 million followers, responding to allegations that she faked cancer. During the clip, which was posted on November 10, Miller said it was "a very difficult time" for her and that she "didn’t realize how bad" her mental health was back then. The mom of two went on to explain that losing her partner, her job, and other factors led her to become depressed and tell a confidant that she had cancer "out of desperation." Newsweek has contacted Miller via email for comment. Miller is typically known for her haul videos and recipe ideas, but she has now gained attention for all the wrong reasons. In just a matter of hours, the clip has gone viral with over 7 million views and more than 616,000 likes on TikTok at the time of writing. The video comes after U.K. newspaper The Sun reported that Miller "faked cancer for likes" in an article published on November 4. The newspaper's report also states that Brittany was convicted of fraud by false representation in July 2020, after which she received a 12-month conditional discharge and was forced to pay compensation costs to the Crown Prosecution Service. In response to the allegations, Miller said on TikTok that a fundraising page was set up by friends, but she had it "immediately shut down" as soon as she saw the donations. She added that she didn’t take any of the money raised. "I’ve grown from this. I am working on being the best version of myself. It took me a long time to understand why I did it, and I forgive myself because I was mentally ill. And I am so deeply sorry to everyone that I have upset or triggered," Miller said on TikTok. Miller went on to dispute the claims that she did this for likes and followers by stating that she wasn’t on social media at the time of this incident. She continued: "I know how horrible this disease is, and I know how much it affects people. So, for that, I am so so sorry." Since that time, Miller said that she moved away and wanted to surround herself with better people. She met her now-husband Ash while fundraising for charities, and thanks him for being her "light at the end of the tunnel." The tearful TikTok video concludes with Miller highlighting her desire to be an advocate for mental health and recognizing how hard it is when people are in a dark place. She thanked her followers and supporters for believing in her through it all. Miller said: "If I could go back and change what I did, I would do it in a heartbeat. It was one stupid sentence that I said almost a decade ago. And I’ve learned so much from it." The video has generated over 9,900 comments on TikTok already, as many praised the influencer for addressing the claims. One commenter posted: "You aren't that person anymore. Life goes on." Another TikTok user wrote: "Be kind to yourself, we all make mistakes." But not everyone was supportive, as one commenter added: "only took 8 years to admit."
