A daughter who lost both her mother and stepfather within the space of three days has opened up on the devastating loss.
Ellie Steward's stepdad, Wayne Dann, had been diagnosed with cancer in October last year, with his health suddenly deteriorating in March.
Even more devastating, however, was that the 29-year-old's mother, Sharon Dann, 54, was perfectly fit and healthy prior to receiving the harrowing news of her husband's fate, only to herself die of a 'broken heart' three days before he passed.
"They were soulmates, that's how they described each other," Ellie said. "They'd finish each other's sentences, they were each other's person."
The duo had been married for almost a decade when landscape gardener Wayne was suddenly informed by medics last year that he'd developed cancer in his groin, after which he was treated with radiotherapy.
Despite the family's prayers for a full recovery, he was subsequently informed that the disease had spread to his lungs, and that he needed to undergo surgery.
And by February this year, doctor's discovered Wayne had developed a sarcoma and required intensive chemotherapy, after which his condition deteriorated.
After he was rushed to hospital in March, Sharon refused to leave his bedside for six days, having been informed that he could die at any moment.
"My mum had a really hard time," Ellie recalled. "She was really stressed and worried about it all. I tried to be there for her as much as I could as I didn't want her to be on her own.
"When Wayne was rushed to hospital, we were told he wasn't going to make it to have the chemotherapy.
"The hospital rang us the next day and said 'we think he's going to die today'.
"The A&E ward put us in a private room but he didn't die that day. Every day I was going in with my mum and sitting in this room.
"The extent of the heartbreak for my mum was huge. She was non-stop in the hospital room with him, she only went home twice.
"She wasn't eating, she wasn't sleeping and I kept trying to get her out of the room.
"I was trying to get her to get some fresh air but she just kept crying and saying she didn't want to be on her own."
Ellie then shared that when she received a call from her mum, she thought she was going to be told that Wayne had died.
Instead, she learned her mum couldn't breathe.
She rushed straight to hospital to care for the mum she 'adored' but was given devastating news.
"I got to the hospital as quickly as I could. The nurses told me that my mum had had a heart attack," Ellie said.
"I got there and they put her in a coma. She was in a coma from Sunday to the 4 April and that's when she died.
"The doctor said that it was a form of broken heart syndrome."
Wayne died three days later.
Broken heart syndrome is a rare condition that happens when a person experiences sudden acute stress that rapidly weakens the heart muscle.
Ellie has chosen to share her story to encourage others who are going through the process of grief to prioritise looking after their wellbeing.
She continued: "Quite a lot of older people die from broken heart syndrome so I think it's quite rare for someone of her age and something the doctors don't really see.
"I wasn't surprised when they said that's what they believed had happened as I knew how much my mum was scared of being lonely.
"My advice to others would just be to be kind to yourself and be patient with yourself. Go through whatever you feel."