The Duke of Cambridge made his comments as he donned scrubs and visited
the Royal Marsden Hospital in London in order to watch a cancer patient undergo
some cutting-edge treatment from a robotic surgeon. William said her Damehood
had been an “amazing” experience for her family, as well as the nursing
staff who had cared for her and joked: “As she put it, she made bowel
cancer sexy.”
Speaking to Dr Nicos Fotiadis, who had treated Dame Deborah, about
meeting her family, he said: “It was an amazing moment for them. I loved
meeting her, she was fantastic.”
And speaking specifically about the campaigner, he shared: “I was
very honoured to be able to speak to her, it felt like a very personal family
moment… it was a glorious day as well.”
He then told chief nurse Mairead Griffin, deputy chief nurse Jo Waller
and ward sister Rowena Trono who also cared for the campaigner: “But thank
you, I know she’d want me to say this as well, thank you to you guys for
caring for her – she always spoke very highly about her care.”
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William was visiting the Royal Marsden Hospital
It appears that Dame Deborah hadn’t lost her sense of humour when she
spoke to the royal, with William joking: “She was saying basically ‘I can
now drink, I can now drink this is brilliant’.
“She was triple parked and she kept making a joke about how many
drinks she could get lined up in front of her.”
In a heartbreaking message earlier this month, the former Sun journalist
revealed that she had headed into at-home hospice care as a result of her bowel
cancer.
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William awarded Deborah a Damehood earlier this month
In an emotional post, she shared: “The message I never wanted to
write. We have tried everything, but my body simply isn’t playing ball.
“My active care has stopped and I am now moved to hospice at-home
care, with my incredible family all around me and the focus is on making sure
I’m not in pain and spending time with them.”
She finished: “Nobody knows how long I’ve got left but I’m not able
to walk, I’m sleeping most of the days, and most things I took for granted are
pipe dreams.”
