Denise Welch took to Instagram on Tuesday to share a difficult and personal post with her fans.
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The Loose Women star reshared a photo of friend Deborah James – Bowel Babe – showing her stood outside The Royal Marsden Hospital in London, along with a heartfelt plea.
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Denise wrote: "This incredible woman, Deborah James @bowelbabe has been my inspiration for some time now. How she has taken her fragile life by the balls and eked every last drop out of it has been a wonder to behold.
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"She is an incredible mum, wife and daughter and @bowelgran has been on the journey every step of the way. I have felt honoured to be allowed to share this families ups and downs on this platform."
Denise reshared a photo of Deborah along with a heartfelt message
The TV star continued: "Tonight Deborah has posted that her body has finally been challenged to the limit and she's not sure how long she has left. Her dying wish is that @bowelbabefund and @bowelcanceruk will continue to raise money for this dreadful disease so I encourage all my followers to pay a visit and see if we can help.
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"A truly incredible woman," Denise concluded, adding four red love hearts.
Deborah - known as Bowel Babe - has candidly shared details of her cancer battle
Emotional fans were quick to react, with a number admitting they had been left in tears by Deborah's plea. "Utterly heartbreaking," one wrote. "Her battle and fight is coming to a close, but her bravery and courage and strength will continue to help others. What an incredible lady. I had been dreading the day when this sort of post was put out there, after following her for so long. So so sad."
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On Monday night, Deborah revealed she is now receiving hospice care as she nears the end of her fight with terminal bowel cancer. She also told followers she does not know "how long I've got left" in a heartbreaking post.
Deborah's latest heartbreaking message
It read, in part: "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.
"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. I know we have left no stone unturned. But even with all the innovative cancer drugs in the world or some magic new breakthrough, my body just can’t continue anymore."
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