Lady Deborah James obituary: An inspiring fighter and presenter

The former deputy principal and podcaster, who died at the age of 40, gained more than 900,000 followers on social media when she documented the highs and lows of her treatment with a unique sense of humor and optimism.

As one of the co-presenters of the BBC podcast You, Me And The Big C, she has participated in candid discussions about cancer that can be both serious and light-hearted, with conversations often marked by laughter.

In her last days, her campaign earned her a ladies’ cap and her Bowel Babe fundraiser for Cancer Research UK surpassed the £ 6 million mark.

Dame Deborah was working as a deputy principal in December 2016, days before Christmas when a consultant told her a colonoscopy showed she had a large tumor.

She had typical symptoms – losing weight, passing blood when she went to the toilet – but wrote it down as a busy working mother.

A family doctor said earlier that Dame Deborah may have irritable bowel syndrome and tests did not show any irregularities.

She never got a follow-up appointment and was told the symptoms were stress related, but she said a “sixth sense” told her something was terribly wrong.

It was only when she paid to see a private specialist that she finally got a diagnosis.

Dame Deborah, just 35 years old, has been told that she has stage four bowel cancer and it is unlikely she would live to be 40.

Despite her diagnosis, she remained relentlessly optimistic and began documenting her treatment on social media and in a newspaper article.

Against the possibility, December 2021 was five years since her diagnosis.

“I am fully aware that I do not have to live to write it today,” she wrote on Instagram.

“But the best advice I was given was not to think too much about the what ifs, and to tackle whatever challenge I have here and now and do it all bit by bit – and then we can maybe just get far! ”

Dame Deborah initially co-hosted the You, Me And The Big C podcast with Lauren Mahon and Rachael Bland.

Bland died in September 2018 at the age of 40 after treatment for breast cancer, and her widower Steve has been a regular on the program ever since.

In early May 2022, she shared a blog post on social media announcing that she had stopped active treatment and moved to a hospice-at-home care, with doctors telling her they had done everything they could.

Her posting caused an outpouring of emotion online.

She returned to her parents’ home in Woking – a bungalow with a garden – where her husband Sebastien and their young children, Hugo and Eloise, joined her.

She spoke to The Times and explained that she had compiled a “death list” and the first item was to record her children’s letters that they could open when she died.

She praised her husband and revealed that she had given him “strict instructions” to proceed after her death.

“He is an attractive man; “I’m like, ‘Don’t be taken for a ride, don’t marry a bimbo, get someone else who can make you laugh like we did,'” she said.

Dame Deborah has also set up a fundraiser on the JustGiving website with what she believes is an optimistic target of £ 250,000. Within four days, she had raised more than 16 times as much.

By the Friday after treatment was discontinued, more than £ 4 million had been donated to Cancer Research UK.

It rose further to more than £ 6 million over the weekend.

In another surprise, Number 10 has announced that she is being honored with a ladies’ cap for her “tireless campaign”.

Dame Deborah later said she felt “honored and shocked” to be considered even for the honor.

Unusually, her femininity was granted by the Duke of Cambridge at the family home, where she joined them for afternoon tea and champagne.

Damehoods are usually handed out by members of the royal family – but at investment ceremonies at royal palaces, including Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle.

She continued her campaign by announcing that she had written another book, entitled How To Live When You Could Be Dead, documenting what she learned about how to have a positive attitude when she’s before life’s greatest challenges.

Despite not being published until August 2022, the book shot to number one on the Amazon list through pre-orders, with her royalties going to her Bowelbabe fund.

The podcast host followed it up by releasing a clothing line featuring In The Style, with 100% of the profits going to charity.

In her last days, she also attended the Chelsea Flower Show to see a blue pink rose named after her.

As well as hosting her “last impromptu party” after her brother Benjamin became engaged to his long-term partner Ashley Hall.