‘Dame Deborah would be so proud of you’: Prince of Wales praises Lorraine for supporting bowel caner campaign that was ‘so important’ to the late BBC podcaster
- Dame Deborah James launched the Bowelbabe cancer research fund last May
- READ MORE: Dame Deborah James thanks supporters in video recorded just before her death from cancer
The Prince of Wales has shared a message of support with Lorraine Kelly today as he praised the TV personality for her bowel cancer campaign work following the death of Dame Deborah James.
Dame Deborah died in June at the age of 40 after a five-year battle with stage four bowel cancer.
Prince William, 40, met the mother-of-two in the weeks before she died at her parent’s home in Surrey, where he awarded her a Damehood, and has gone on to champion her cause in the months since.
Sharing a video on his official social media page today, the royal wrote: ‘Lorraine, Dame Deborah James would be so proud of what you and the team are doing to raise awareness of bowel cancer. Keep up the great work #NoButts.’
In the clip, the father-of-three said: ‘Hi Lorraine, just wanted to say a big thankyou to you and your team for all you are doing to raise awareness for bowel cancer with your No Butts campaign.
The Prince of Wales has shared a message of support with Lorraine Kelly today as he praised the TV personality for her bowel cancer campaign work following the death of Dame Deborah James
The Prince and Princess of Wales have praised Dame Deborah James’ (pictured with Prince William) ‘incredible legacy’ after more than £11million was raised for her Bowelbabe Fund
And sharing a video on his official social media page, the royal wrote said Deborah James would be ‘so proud’ of Lorraine and her campaign
‘As you know, I got to meet Dame Deborah so I know how important this was to her.’
The royal went on to explain that many people ‘do not know the signs and symptoms’ of bowel cancer, adding: ‘If you’re watching this, please take a second to learn and listen about the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer. It could save your life.’
The clip was also played on Lorraine’s breakfast show this morning, with the presenter appearing deeply moved by the message from the royal.
After inspiring the nation last year, Dame Deborah was presented with a damehood by Prince William shortly after announcing she was receiving end-of-life care.
The royal cleared his diary and travelled to her parents’ home in Woking, Surrey, in mid-May to perform an honours ceremony at a tea party celebrating her extraordinary life.
The royal and his wife had been deeply moved by her campaigning and bravery and paid a moving tribute to the mother-of-two, who was survived by her two children Hugo, 14, and Eloise, 12, and her husband Sebastien.
At the time of her death, in a tweet signed ‘W&C’, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge said: ‘We are so sad to hear the heartbreaking news about Dame Deborah.
‘Our thoughts are with her children, her family and her loved ones.
‘Deborah was an inspirational and unfalteringly brave woman whose legacy will live on’.
They have continued to support her BowelBabe Fund and in recent weeks praised her ‘incredible legacy’ after more than £11million was raised in her memory.
Prince William and Kate shared their support of the fund on Twitter and Instagram earlier this month, writing: ‘An incredible legacy which continues to impact so many. We couldn’t be more proud of the work of the @bowelbabe Fund.’
The clip was also played on Lorraine’s breakfast show this morning, with the presenter appearing deeply moved by the message from the royal
Earlier this month, Prince William and Kate shared their support of Deborah’s Bowel Babe fund on Twitter and Instagram
BOWEL CANCER: THE SYMPTOMS YOU SHOULDN’T IGNORE
Bowel, or colorectal, cancer affects the large bowel, which is made up of the colon and rectum.
Such tumours usually develop from pre-cancerous growths, called polyps.
Symptoms include:
- Bleeding from the bottom
- Blood in stools
- A change in bowel habits lasting at least three weeks
- Unexplained weight loss
- Extreme, unexplained tiredness
- Abdominal pain
Most cases have no clear cause, however, people are more at risk if they:
- Are over 50
- Have a family history of the condition
- Have a personal history of polyps in their bowel
- Suffer from inflammatory bowel disease, such as Crohn’s disease
- Lead an unhealthy lifestyle
Treatment usually involves surgery, and chemo- and radiotherapy.
More than nine out of 10 people with stage one bowel cancer survive five years or more after their diagnosis.
This drops significantly if it is diagnosed in later stages.
According to Bowel Cancer UK figures, more than 41,200 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year in the UK.
It affects around 40 per 100,000 adults per year in the US, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Earlier this month, Deborah James’s sister revealed she misses the late campaigner’s ‘sparkle’ and ‘ability to make the normal a little bit different and fun’.
Relaunching the No Butts bowel cancer awareness campaign on Lorraine – with her mother Heather James – Sarah Wieczorek opened up about the fundraiser’s legacy after she passed away aged 40 last year.
‘A lot of people have often come up and said, “Oh it must be really hard to talk about”, but actually it’s kind of been like therapy,’ she told the programme.
‘And the fact that Deborah was so open about it, we haven’t had to explain a lot of the hard stuff, she’s done that for us…she’s left us a real privilege of a legacy.’
Her sister had also admitted she feels a ‘little bit blasé’ about Deborah’s incredible achievements – including her fund recently raising more than £11 million for bowel cancer – because she had always been exceptional.
Relaunching the No Butts bowel cancer awareness campaign on Lorraine – with her mother Heather James – Sarah Wieczorek opened up about the fundraiser’s legacy
‘She used to move mountains all the time,’ Sarah added. ‘So I wouldn’t have expected anything less.’
Their mother Heather had also praised her daughter’s memory as being preserved by the incredible awareness raised about the gruelling disease.
‘If only we’d had that Deborah ten years ago, perhaps Deborah wouldn’t have died,’ she said. ‘But what a legacy.’
Meanwhile Deborah’s family and Cancer Research UK (CRUK) recently revealed that the former deputy head teacher helped raise £11.3million before she died.
She also left behind a video message expressing her gratitude over the success of her campaign and her plans for how the funds raised would be used.
‘One thing I wanted to do before I passed away was to set up the Bowelbabe fund,’ Dame Deborah said in the video.
Her sister had also admitted she feels a ‘little bit blasé’ about Deborah’s incredible achievements – including her fund recently raising more than £11 million for bowel cancer – because she had always been exceptional
Their mother Heather had also praised her daughter’s memory as being preserved by the incredible awareness raised about the gruelling disease
‘I wanted to set it up to ensure that more people can benefit from some of the things that I benefited from.
‘We will ensure that more people have access to personalised medicine, clinical trials, cutting edge technology to help more and more people live longer with cancer.’
She added: ‘Every penny counts. I cannot thank you enough for your support of the Bowelbabe fund. You are awesome.
Dame Deborah was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016. She continued to raise awareness about the disease until her death on June 28, 2022.
The former deputy head teacher, who was known to many as Bowel Babe, intimately detailed the last five years of her life online.
Her candid posts about her progress and diagnosis – including videos of her dancing her way through treatment – won praise from the public and media alike.
Dame Deborah (pictured) launched the Bowelbabe cancer research fund last May to raise money for research into personalised medicine for cancer patients
The Dame also wrote and published her second book How to Live When You Should Be Dead , while suffering from cancer
She launched the You, Me And The Big C podcast in 2018, alongside Lauren Mahon and Rachael Bland.
In May 2022, the podcaster revealed that she had stopped active treatment and was receiving end-of-life care at her parents’ home in Woking, Surrey, with her husband and their two children on hand.
Living life on her own terms despite her illness, she designed Charity T-shirts a clothing line to raise millions more for her Bowelbabe fund.
The Dame also wrote and published her second book How to Live When You Should Be Dead, while suffering from cancer, detailing how developing a positive mindset was key to enabling her to cope with her diagnosis.
She told her children to ‘take chances and experience life now’ and to marry for love in a heartbreaking final letter.
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