Linda Nolan has passed away at 65, following a 20-year breast cancer battle.
The Irish singer, who rose to fame alongside her sisters in the group The Nolans, died on Wednesday morning, her family has confirmed.
Linda was not the only member of her family hit by the disease, her sisters also have a history of breast cancer, with herself and Anne both receiving diagnoses and Bernie passing away from the disease in 2013.
Meanwhile Coleen had skin cancer — a carcinoma on her shoulder and pre-melanoma on her face.
Linda’s sister Coleen previously admitted that it has become a daily ritual for her to check for signs of cancer everyday after the tragic effects the disease has had on her family.
Their father, Tommy Nolan Sr, was the first to be struck by the cruel disease, with him dying from liver cancer in 1998.
Linda was first diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in 2005 before getting the all-clear in 2006.
But in 2017 she was given the devastating news she had a form of incurable secondary cancer in her hip, which then spread to her liver in 2020.
And in August, Linda issued an update that the tumours in her brain – which were thought to be stable – have grown
Friends and family members have paid tribute to Linda Nolan following her death to breast cancer on Wednesday
Around 55,000 women and 370 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK, says Breast Cancer Now
Then in 2023, she shared the news that the cancer had spread to her brain, with two tumours discovered on the left side of her brain which left her struggling with her speech and balance.
And in March last year Linda, who had a type of secondary breast cancer called HER2-positive, started to undergo immunotherapy every three weeks to tackle the spreading cancer, before starting chemo drug Enhertu.
HER2-positive breast cancers accounts for 15-20 per cent of cases of the disease and is an aggressive and fast-growing form.
Despite several family members also receiving cancer diagnosis, HER2-positive is not hereditary, meaning the gene mutation can’t be passed on.
Appearing on Good Morning Britain last year, Linda revealed that she was being set on a new course of chemotherapy as a result of the tumour growth — and shared the news that she could face losing her hair once again.
She also revealed the physical toll the ongoing treatment was taking on her smile, pointing to a gap in her teeth and exclaiming: ‘Look, I’ve lost a tooth!’
In an interview with the Mirror she admitted she was left ‘sobbing’ as the doctor delivered the results, saying how she wished cancer would just ‘leave her alone.’
‘I sobbed when my consultant first told me. I know so many people are suffering and going through things, but I thought, just for once, could cancer just leave me alone? My heart sank,’ she added.
Around 55,000 women and 370 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK, says Breast Cancer Now.
Meanwhile, roughly 300,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer are diagnosed in women every year in the US.
