Dear friends & supporters of our man Dan,

It’s with the heaviest of hearts I have to tell you that Dan died just before 4pm on Wednesday 23^rd November, following a short spell at Katoomba Hospital in Sydney’s Blue Mountains. Although there was a lot of pain involved in his fight against metastasized bowel cancer, when he slipped away it was peaceful and pain-free. His devoted fiancée Jen, his much-loved future sisters-in-law and a few close friends were by his side.

Most of us can only imagine the kind of devastation that comes with losing someone so young in such horrific circumstances, and our heart goes out to Jen, his mum and dad Lynne and Chris, his beloved sister Natalie and the rest of his family back in the UK.

• To all those who shared the link to this campaign, please know that if just one youngster who needs to get checked gets checked, you’ve done a wonderful thing. Dan’s ultimately terminal condition had almost certainly been developing for many months or even years, during which time it would have been treatable, but bowel cancer flew under the radar because he was so young no-one was looking for it.

• To all those who donated to this campaign, please know that your generosity gave Dan and Jen the leg room they needed to focus on the research and treatment required for their fight, free from day to day stresses with the time to ensure no stone was left unturned in their mission to make him better. Even though the ending isn’t what we wanted, thanks to you Dan didn’t die wondering.

• To all those who gave Dan love and support since he was diagnosed, Jen says “you know who you are” and thanks you from the bottom of her heart. Every single last one of you who called, came to give him a cuddle or got involved in their fight in anyway, you helped generate the strength and love they needed to keep going. Dan kept saying “thank you” during his last days, and he was talking to you too.

• To all those who found out on social media, including some family and close friends. As you know our man Dan had a lot of friends and was incredibly well-connected... and somehow the news started to break on Facebook just a few hours after he died, before we had a chance to reach out to you. If you’d like to know more about Dan’s experience or keep in touch regarding his funeral, please contact me on [email protected].

Dan did not lose this fight, it was already lost long before he knew anything about it. But the mind blowing bravery, the meticulous research, the utter dedication, the unwavering positivity, the innovative trouble-shooting, the calm, practical approach to problems which would send the rest of us insane... anyway you look at what happened, you see an outright winner.

On his last morning, when he was sick enough to know he wouldn’t last the day, he got a burst of energy and gathered us around. He said, “Right, I’m not fucking done yet, alright! Now you have got to work together, get me sitting up so I can talk to you.” Although it was a bit too hard to get him sitting up, we did have a good laugh with him about how, in the face of such adversity, he still found time to be a bossy control freak.

And of course he’s totally right, Dan’s not done yet... because a legend like this lives forever.