Dame Deborah James said 'it can be hard to make memories when you are dying' in a bittersweet Instagram post. The 40-year-old BBC podcast host is currently on end-of-life care at her parents' home in Woking.
Dame Deborah, who is mum to daughter Eloise, 12, and son, Hugo, 14, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016. She has been sharing her journey online with fans - who have helped raise a whopping £6.6m for the Bowel Babe fund for charities such as Cancer Research UK .
She was honoured with a damehood by the Duke of Cambridge for her work to raise awareness of bowel cancer.
READ MORE: Dame Deborah James 'scared to sleep' as she shares her latest dream to come true
In a series of snaps posted on her Instagram, Dame Deborah told her 900,000 followers that she was "feeling awful after a bad day", even crying over leaking drains. So her sister decided to throw a family sleepover to cheer her up, complete with a tee-pee tent, fairy lights, balloons, skincare masks and a Cinderella film.
The photos show Dame Deborah dressed in matching pink pyjamas and eye masks with her family, enjoying a cosy night in. The gesture meant a lot to the Dame, as she has been taking lots of rest to manage her condition, which is getting harder for her as she gets more sleepy, she revealed in an Instagram post two weeks ago.
"I’m getting less and less able to leave the house, or bed really now, so was feeling pretty down about it," the journalist and Dame explained on Instagram. "Making memories can be hard when you are dying! Oh the pressure!
"I’m now only getting some very grabbed hours between the sleeping and side effects, but this girly sleepover managed to put such a smile to my face, having spent most of yesterday in tears! I was feeling awful after a bad day, so didn’t watch the set up of anything.
"But with the help of my sister and bro, I managed to calm down and then they wheeled me into the room last night and yes, I cried over the fairy lights! Good tears!
"It was just perfect! I went from staying in my wheelchair to ending up everyone helping to get me into a Tee pee to watch Cinderella with the gang and sit there like a five year old with a huge Cheshire Cat smile on my face, next to my daughter and sister!"
The Dame also praised the tee-pee company for donating to the Bowel Babe fund instead of accepting payment, adding: "We booked the experience as regular customer but they refused payment, so have donated it to @bowelbabefund instead. But I wanted to give a big shout out to @teepeevibetribe because they were local, just so good and made something that meant a a lot to me just so effortless.
"Today I sleep! But with another memory and a smile."
Dame Deborah made the heart-wrenching decision to receive hospice care to treat her terminal bowel cancer away from her home in South London, as she does not want her children to see their home full of medical equipment.
According to Bowel Cancer UK, every 15 minutes, someone is diagnosed with bowel cancer in the UK, which is nearly 43,000 people every year. The money raised from the Bowel Babe appeal will help fund clinical trials and research into personalised medicine that could result in new treatments for cancer patients.
In August, Dame Deborah will release her second book called How to Live When You Could Be Dead, and pre-orders on Amazon UK have already soared. The Dame's first book, F*** You Cance r, is also a number one best-seller on Amazon.
Follow Dame Deborah James on Instagram here. To donate to the Bowel Babe fund, visit here .
Pre-order How to Live When You Could Be Dead here.
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