Sick star Telling my girls was so painful
Actress Leah Bracknell has revealed how she struggled to tell her daughters she is dying.
The former Emmerdale star, who played Zoe Tate in the ITV soap, was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer last month.
She says that breaking the news to daughters Lily, 25, and 21-year- old Maya was the “worst thing” she has ever faced.
The 52- year- old said: “Any mother will know how I felt. It’s the worst thing you can imagine having to tell those closest to you something like this, trying to find the words.
“It’s the worst thing I’ve ever had to do. I think it’s almost worse for those close to you because they’re trying to look after and protect the person who’s poorly, not just physically but emotionally.”
NHS doctors told the star, who is also a trained yoga instructor, that her cancer was inoperable and al l that could be done was to manage the il lness and that chemotherapy could prolong her life.
But af ter a pr ivate Facebook appeal went viral, donations flooded in to raise £ 60,000 for pioneering immunotherapy treatment at a German clinic.
Leah added: “I’m a very private person and it was never my intention for the appeal to go public.
“But people have been so massively generous I wanted to say thank you.”
Leah is undergoing tests to see if she is eligible to receive the potential ly life-saving treatment.