Dame Deborah James has called for the UK’s major supermarkets to include bowel cancer symptoms on toilet roll packaging.
Deborah, 40, has been battling bowel cancer for over five years. Tragically, her disease was recently found to be terminal.
As a result, she has been under hospice care at home for almost a month.
However, she was given a mental boost today (June 7) after Marks & Spencer announced plans to add information on signs of the disease to its packaging.
Deborah James latest news: Star makes a heartfelt plea
Revealing that the move was down to the campaigning from a close friend of hers, she said: “It’s the start of things to come, I think we should now do a big shout out to other companies now, saying come on where’s your signs and symptoms.”
We need actual information signposted on those loo rolls so I’m hoping lots of other big brands will now go ‘yeah, hang on, this makes massive sense.
Deborah made an appearance on Lorraine on Tuesday to share details of her journey. During her chat, she also urged other supermarkets to follow in the footsteps of Marks & Spencer.
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She continued: “Forget about the puppies, I’m bored of the puppies.
“We need actual information signposted on those loo rolls so I’m hoping lots of other big brands will now go ‘yeah, hang on, this makes massive sense. This is what we need to be doing’.”
“I can’t wait to see that happen,” she added.
Dame Deborah: ‘I don’t want to die’
Deborah has been branded “inspirational” in her final days as she keeps fans updated on her Instagram account.
The star has been open about her journey ever since she was first diagnosed in 2016.
She recently confessed that she’s finding the concept of dying hard to grasp as she struggles with how much time she has left.
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“Dying is really hard and I’ve been consumed by anger this week. I’ve been a real [bleep],” she said.
“I keep shouting at people and pushing them away. I’m so angry at what’s happening to me – I don’t want to die.”
You can donate to Deborah’s Just Giving fund here.
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