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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
World
Shehab Khan

Teenage girl dying of brain cancer receives more than 33,000 greeting cards after Facebook post

A girl dying of brain cancer has received more than 33,000 cards from strangers, after posting on Facebook asking people to send her messages. 

Sabine Wortelboer, 15, from the Netherlands, was diagnosed with the illness last year and has now decided to stop treatment. 

Her brother, Sol Worelboer, is a TV presenter, and started a crowdfunding campaign for specialist treatment in the US.   

Initially the treatment appeared to work but after suffering gastrointestinal inflammation she was unable to take her medication.

Sabine took the decision to stop treatment altogether and posted on social media asking people to send her greeting cards.

“After the result I've decided to stop all medication. It's not going to work anymore,” she posted on Facebook

“I would really like it if people, for the last time, can send me a whole bunch of cards,” she added, while also including her address in the message.

The Dutch postal service needed a dedicated team to sort through all the cards, which were delivered in crates. 

In her last blog post, Sabine posted: “I think it is time to say goodbye, thank you for everything you’ve done for me”. 

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