A Dundee woman who captured the hearts of thousands of people after being diagnosed with terminal cervical cancer has died aged 31.
Sophy Mitchell was told she had just months to live after finding out she had the disease earlier this year.
She died on Wednesday at Roxburghe House hospice with husband Kevin by her side.
Kevin told The Courier his wife had fought bravely until the end – and managed to keep her familiar smile.
He said: “She was fighting so hard at the end. She was fighting for every breath.
“She is so strong. I just told her to go to sleep now.”
Kevin says Sophy had been striving for “big things” in her job at Dundee and Angus College before becoming ill.
He continued: “I was always proud of her, but I never knew how proud I could be of Sophy fighting this awful disease to the bitter end.
We both felt she was let down from the system but the day she got told her condition was terminal she fought it head-on.”
“The love and admiration I had for Sophy will never be repeated.
“Up until her last days she would joke to the nurses that she was still eating, as they said her appetite would go.
“It made me smile when she would ask for random food in between sleeping.
“After the day Sophy and I got the news about her cancer, we never ever got any good news.
“We both felt she was let down from the system but the day she got told her condition was terminal she fought it head-on.
“This made the whole process much easier on me, her family and friends, as did her positivity and bubbly smiling manner. ”
Kevin added: “I would like to thank everybody at wards 36 and 32 at Ninewells as well as at Roxburghe House.
“Everyone was fantastic and I can’t thank everyone enough.”
Diagnosis came hours after holiday
Sophy had hoped to spend one final Christmas with her family but the disease progressed more quickly than anticipated.
She decided to share her cancer journey in a bid to ensure other women do not ignore signs of cervical cancer.
Sophy, from the Hilltown, had just returned from a family holiday in Benidorm in April when she was told she had the disease.
However, she had begun experiencing symptoms in December – when her period bleeding lasted for a month.
In January she was taken to A&E doubled over in pain, and told she had a bladder infection.
But no matter what she tried, she was not getting better.
Despite what she was told by medics, Sophy felt there was something more seriously wrong – and a hospital appointment on the day she returned from holiday resulted in a lump being found.
A biopsy on April 29 showed she had cancer – and just days later she was told it had spread, and she only had months left.
Determined to make the most of the time she had left, Sophy created a bucket list.
She said at the time: “I’ve had the best 30 years on this planet – it’s time to enjoy the time I have left.
Fundraising helped Sophy fulfil bucket list plans
“I want to be smiling until the end – laughing and being Sophy. I am not going down too easily.”
Thanks to generous fundraising by family and friends, Sophy and Kevin managed to fit in numerous fun days out, enjoying champagne and lobster – both of which were high up her bucket list.
She also enjoyed a virtual chat with stars from her favourite TV show, Loose Women.
Sophy initially underwent 10 rounds of radiotherapy in a bid to prolong her life.
Then in July she began chemotherapy as the cancer had spread to her bones, lungs and liver.
On August 19 Sophy was moved to the hospice at Roxburghe House for end-of-life care.
Conversation