Mother Charlie Anderson-Read was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in November 2023. She has since documented her journey right up to the end. Charlie died on October 10, announcing it herself in a heartbreaking video.
Charlie Anderson-Read was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in November 2023. The UK mother told Project Purple she had always been active and passionate about sports and exercise. Before falling ill, she even played hockey in a national league.
Anderson-Read decided to share her story and the symptoms she experienced in the lead-up to her diagnosis. It began with a loss of appetite and pain in her abdomen — warning signs that would eventually lead to life-changing news.
She was later diagnosed with terminal cholangiocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive form of bile duct cancer.
Charlie began sharing her journey online, documenting the grueling treatments she underwent, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy and several targeted therapies, as well as taking part in a clinical trial.
Sadly, her cancer could not be cured. Weeks ago, the 41-year-old mother of a four-year-old daughter recorded an emotional video bidding her thousands of supporters a final goodbye and saying she was “forever grateful” for those who followed her journey.
On October 10, she passed away, survived by her four-year-old daughter and wife, Louise. Charlie Anderson-Read decided to tell the world herself she had passed away.
Mum, 41, announces her own death in heartbreaking video amid cancer diagnosis
In a video published on Instagram, a note read, “At 7:30 this morning, Charlie passed. She is now at peace. A few weeks ago, Charlie recorded a video to share with you all after her death.”
Charlie then appeared, beginning the video, “If you are watching this video, I am, unfortunately, no longer here. No, I haven’t kind of posted it from a different world.”
“Someone has kindly posted this on my behalf, so thank you. I just wanted to say thank you to all of you guys. All of your messages and kind words have really helped me through what’s been a very difficult time. A lot of you have donated money to help out Louise and Florence for when I am no longer here and for that I’ll be forever grateful,” Charlie said.
“I hope through this being such a terrible situation for me, I hope that some of these videos have helped out at least some people. And through this whole ordeal, I have only come across people being kind to me, generous to me and it’s just shown me how much good there is in the world,” she continued. “I hope you guys can see it all now.”
Anderson-Read added: “Any type of disease, terminal or whatever, is just absolutely awful and I can only imagine what it’s been like for my friends and family and to people that have never met me, how hard it’s been to watch my journey.”
Pancreatic cancer – symptoms, warning signs
Often dubbed the “silent killer” because its symptoms can be difficult to spot, pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms of cancer.
Common symptoms include pain in the stomach or back, unexplained weight loss, indigestion, loss of appetite, changes in bowel habits, and jaundice, which causes the skin and whites of the eyes to turn yellow.
However, these warning signs can easily be mistaken for less serious conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), making the disease harder to identify in its early stages.
There are currently no screening tests available to detect pancreatic cancer in its early stages, making it even harder to catch the disease before it advances.
Rest in peace, Charlie Anderson-Read. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family.
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