'Brave' Wendy fights to the end
Former TV star Wendy Richard has been described as "brave" after losing her battle with cancer today.
The tribute came from her agent Kevin Francis, after the Eastenders actress, who had battled with the condition for over a decade, passed away this morning.
"She was incredibly brave and retained her sense of humour right to the end," says Mr Francis.
Richard, who was 65, suffered from breast cancer twice in the mid-1990s and 2002, defeating the disease on each occasion.
The actress, who played Pauline Fowler in the soap opera for 20 years, revealed the cancer had returned in October 2008, highlighting the need for women to have cancer insurance.
She married her long-time partner John Burns shortly after and he was by her side when she passed away at the Harley Street Clinic in London.
According to Cancer Research UK, incidents of breast cancer in the UK have risen by 13 per cent in the last ten years, illustrating the need to take out breast cancer insurance. 
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