Tanya Farrel’s loved ones are heartbroken by her death
Tanya Farrel was diagnosed with breast cancer several years ago after discovering a lump(Image: Handout)
Tributes have been paid to a caring and devoted mum who died last week after handling her illness with the “power and strength of an ox”. Tanya Farrel, 40, was diagnosed with cancer several years ago following the discovery of a lump in her breast.
She was given the all-clear by medics after undergoing treatment, but in 2023, she learned the disease had returned as a secondary cancer. She died on Monday, January 13, having spent Christmas and New Year in Tenerife with her mum, Pam, her partner, Joe, and her two young sons, Kade and Kairo.
Tanya, from Croxteth, worked for Liverpool City Council before she was forced to give up her job due to her illness. She came from a big, close-knit family, with two sisters and three brothers. Her cousin, Adelle Hannan, told the ECHO the family was “shocked and devastated” by Tanya’s death.
“She was our girl,” said Adelle. “We’re all in shock, we can’t believe it. Out of all of us cousins, Tanya’s always been the model one. She stood out from the crowd – she was funny and caring, and she dressed the best.
“She loved clothes and fashion – she was the fashion queen. And she was so kind-hearted. As long as everyone else was alright, she wasn’t bothered about herself. When she was ill, she was just focused on other people – wanting to make sure they still enjoyed their life, and making sure her mum was okay.”
Tanya with her mum and sisters(Image: Handout)
According to Adelle, Tanya was very close to her mum, and had a “great group of friends” who all rallied round when she became ill. She was a devoted and loving mum to to her boys and took them to the football every week. In February last year, Pam and Joe organised a surprise 40th birthday party for her at the Queen of Martyrs Social Club.
Adelle said: “She wasn’t fully mobile because she’d recently had an operation on her hip, but she looked gorgeous. She got dressed up and everyone she knew was there. Her mum decorated everything in white – there were white balloons and a cake with angel wings. They wanted to make it really special for her. Tanya was made up about it, and she managed to dance with her mum and have a good time.”
Over the course of the year, Tanya’s condition deteriorated. At Christmas, she went on holiday to Tenerife with her family so they could spend some quality time together in the sun. While she was there, her sisters Danielle and Hayley flew over with their kids as part of a surprise visit, joining Tanya, her mum, her partner and her boys to bring in the New Year.
Sadly, it was to be their last holiday together. When Tanya arrived back home in Liverpool, she felt very unwell and took herself to Clatterbridge Hospital, where she spent her final days. “She just went to sleep, and that was it,” said Adelle. “She didn’t suffer.”
According to the NHS, symptoms of breast cancer in women may include:
- a lump, or swelling in your breast, chest or armpit, or a change in the skin of your breast, such as dimpling (may look like orange peel) or redness (may be harder to see on black or brown skin)
- a change in size or shape of 1 or both breasts
- nipple discharge (if you are not pregnant or breastfeeding), which may have blood in it
- a change in the shape or look of your nipple, such as it turning inwards (inverted nipple) or a rash on it (may look like eczema)
- pain in your breast or armpit which does not go away – breast pain that comes and goes is usually not a symptom of breast cancer