When you’re trying to come to terms with a terminal health diagnosis, you would be very much forgiven for putting yourself and your own needs first in your final days and months. One person who couldn’t help but make her family her priority, however, was British mum Denise Oakley.

 

The 48-year-old, from Derby, has made headlines this week after her partner Paul Walton revealed how she wrote a ‘how-to’ book for him, to ensure that he was able to manage everyday life without her.

 

After experiencing pains during a family holiday in 2013, Denise was diagnosed with cancer of the liver. She initially underwent chemotherapy, but with the cancer spreading and the treatment having no effect, she decided to stop.

 

Facing into a terminal diagnosis, being given just two years from August 2013 to live, Denise set about writing a book on everything from how to cook to where to find the vacuum cleaner, for Paul.

 

 

She also set herself a bucket list of three main goals: to become a grandmother, to see her son Tyler become a teenager, and to see her daughter Lauren turn 21. She ticked off two out of three goals, sadly passing away before Lauren’s birthday.

 

Paul and their three children have shared Denise’s story with The Express, paying tribute to her ‘fantastic’ gesture to the grieving family.

 

“Denise was making sure I could do [the tasks] as well because she knew she was very ill and wanted me to be able to cope with the everyday tasks after she passed. She also left a message with me to look after the children and her granddaughter. It was a fantastic thing to do. That was Denise - totally selfless,” said Paul.

 

He added: “This list sums her up, because she was always thinking of others, despite being very ill with cancer. Most people would rightly be just focusing on their own battle and trying to get better, but Denise was thinking of others." 

 

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