Prince William and Kate have shared a gushing tribute to Deborah James as she continues to fight for her life in hospice care amid her stage four bowel cancer battle.
The royal couple took to Twitter on Wednesday evening to praise the 40-year-old BBC star as they described her as 'special'.
Their emotional tweet read: "Every now and then, someone captures the heart of the nation with their zest for life & tenacious desire to give back to society.
"Deborah is one of those special people. Her tireless efforts to raise awareness of bowel cancer and end the stigma of treatment are inspiring.
"We are so sad to hear her recent update but pleased to support the @bowelbabef, which will benefit the @royalmarsdenNHS among others.
"Deborah, our thoughts are with you, your family and your friends. Thank you for giving hope to so many who are living with cancer. W & C."
Deborah has been treated at the Royal Marsden which the Duke is Patron of and it's one of the beneficiaries of her fund.
A senior palace source said: "Along with the rest of the nation, the Duke and Duchess have been touched by Deborah's story and huge efforts to raise awareness."
William and Kate's heartfelt tribute comes after former BBC presenter Deborah shared a heartbreaking health update on Monday, confirming that she is now in hospice care and is spending her time surrounded by her family and friends.
Deborah, who has battled stage 4 bowel cancer for almost five years, took to Twitter to share the devastating update with her beloved fans and followers.
The mum-of-two said that although she has been fighting her illness for five years, it's not easy to accept.
The much-loved BBC star penned: "The tweet I never wanted to write. The time has come to say goodbye.
"It has been 5 years to prepare, doesn’t make it any easy.
"I’m under hospice at home care, & I’m spending my time surrounded by my family. Please buy me a wine to see me out and raise vital funds."
The brave star, who has documented her cancer journey on social media under the name 'bowel babe' has seen her BowelBabe Fund hit a staggering £3 million after she revealed her last wishes this week.
Deborah urged people to donate to the fundraiser - at bowelbabe.org - as she revealed she had been moved to hospice care at home following her five year battle with cancer.
Her fundraiser skyrocketed to a whopping £250,000 shortly after going live.
And it has now reached a staggering £3million in just three days.
Deborah has said that she's 'blown away' by the generosity of people as she continues to fight her illness.
"I’m just blown away, I never thought we’d get to that number in 12 hours," she said after the £250,000 was raised.
“It makes me emotional to see the outpouring of love," she added to The Sun.
The Bowelbabe Fund for Cancer Research UK is Deborah’s final endeavour of many to support research into bowel cancer.
The fundraiser website reads: “All money raised will be allocated, with the support of CRUK [Cancer Research UK] to funding causes and projects that I really care about,”
* You can visit Deborah's Bowelbabe fundraising page here.
