The widower of Cardiff journalist Rachael Bland, who co-hosted a podcast with Dame Deborah James, says the pair used to talk about being “in denial” about cancer. Despite this, he described how Dame Deborah always dealt with the illness "on her terms". Podcaster Steve told Lorraine Kelly: “I think she took a lot of inspiration from Rachael and the way that she tackled the last five or six weeks. I know that she was messaging me last week, asking me how I organised the funeral. She was super organised and it was always on her terms."
Rachael, who passed away from breast cancer in 2018, hosted You Me and the Big C alongside Deborah and fellow cancer activist, Lauren Mahon. The trio used to openly talk about cancer and would be self-deprecating about their diagnosis. According to Steve, “Deb and Rachael used to talk a lot about being in denial and using denial as a powerful tool”. He told Lorraine: “I always thought that did them a bit of a disservice because they knew exactly what was happening.!
Steve talked about how Deborah “stared [cancer] in the face and lived life as hard as she possibly could for as long as she possibly could”. During Wednesday’s, June 29 show, Lorraine paid tribute to Deborah and described some of the many things that she did to raise awareness for bowel cancer.
Read more: Dame Deborah James dies of bowel cancer aged 40
After the interview, Steve shared his Lorraine appearance on Twitter and said: "The real Deb. The one who was the first to call if I was ever having a tough time. The one who was the life and soul of every single party. The one we’re going to miss so so so much."
Deborah James’ battle with cancer began in 2016 when she was diagnosed with incurable bowel cancer. The presenter and journalist used her platform to encourage conversation about the illness and stressed for people to “check their poo.”
The self-proclaimed, ‘Bowelbabe’, lost her battle with bowel cancer on Tuesday, June 28. Her family confirmed the news in a post on Instagram and praised her “determination”, calling her “inspiring.”
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