A mother of two from London has passed away from bowel cancer after initially believing her symptoms were hormonal.

Laura Dawson, 44, died on June 29 following a battle with stage 3 bowel cancer that was only diagnosed in March 2024—months after she began experiencing persistent fatigue and bloating. She had attributed the changes to perimenopause until her condition suddenly worsened, leaving her in too much pain to move.

She was rushed to hospital, where emergency surgery uncovered an obstruction in her bowel. A biopsy soon confirmed the cancer had already spread to nearby lymph nodes.

Chemotherapy initially appeared successful. By August, Laura was told she had a clear scan. But just one month later, in September, the cancer returned—and had continued to spread.

“That was absolutely gut-wrenching,” said her husband, Ben Dawson, in interviews shared across multiple outlets.

As her health declined, Laura made the difficult decision in May to end treatment and focus on time with her loved ones. She entered hospice care shortly before her death.

Facing death brought new clarity, Laura said

In the final weeks of her life, Laura spoke candidly about her experience and how it reshaped her perspective on mortality. “Some of the happiest days of my life have been in the last few weeks,” she shared.

She believed society’s fear of death often made the process more isolating. “We shy away from it, and that reinforces the idea that it’s something dark or traumatic. But it doesn’t have to be.”

“Cancer has forced me to acknowledge what we all know deep down—we’re going to die. And since then, I’ve lived more fully than I ever had before. That’s been a gift.”

Laura is survived by her two sons, Jacob, 17, and Theo, 15, and her husband, Ben. The family chose to be open with their children about her condition from the beginning.

“We’ve always told them the truth—what the outcomes could be,” Ben said. “We wanted them to trust us, and that honesty has helped us get through this together.”

He described his wife as someone who never let her illness change her spirit. “They say people are either glass half full or glass half empty. Laura was just grateful to have a glass at all—and she wanted to share it with others.”