Home and Away’s saddest cancer storylines – teen death, days to live and final wishes

Home and Away ‘s Gabe Miller (Akos Armont) recently arrived in Summer Bay and reunited with ex-fiancée Mackenzie Booth, played by Emily Weir.

But while were in the midst of enjoying their second chance at love, Gabe made the heartbreaking discovery that his cancer had returned.

The newcomer had kept his illness a secret before Bree discovered he was being treated for Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma around one year prior.

READ MORE: Home and Away Justin star pays tribute to on-screen daughter as dark twist revealed

Gabe is not the first Summer Bay resident to fight the illness and certainly won’t be the last.

In the midst of the hard-hitting storyline, Daily Star has looked back at some of the most devastating cancer storylines in the soap’s history.

Romeo Smith

In 2013, fan favourite character Romeo Smith was diagnosed with incurable skin cancer.

Romeo, played by Luke Mitchell, made the heartbreaking decision to hide his illness from his wife Indi Walker (Samara Weaving) as he felt she had too much to deal with after starting a new business.

After learning he had terminal stage four melanoma, Romeo confided in Indi’s dad, Sid Walker (Robert Mammone), but begged him not to tell his daughter in order to protect her.

Romeo fled the Bay without telling Indi he was going to die, leaving her heartbroken at her husband’s sudden departure without a proper explanation.

After Sid finally told her the truth, Indi later received news that Romeo had passed away, bringing an end to one of the soap’s most beloved couples.

Billie Ashford

Introduced as the younger sister of Martin ‘Ash’ Ashford (George Mason), Billie Ashford (Tessa de Josselin) was initially a troublemaker but eventually settled into life in the Bay.

It seems things were coming together for Billie, played by Tessa de Josselin, as she gave birth to a baby girl and found love with VJ Patterson (Matthew Little).

But things took a devastating turn shortly after Billie welcomed Luc as she was diagnosed with an aggressive, untreatable form of cancer and told she had just days to live.

The young mum and VJ decided to get married in front of their family and friends before spending their last moments together as a three.

Sat on the beach, the family watched the sunrise over summer Bay as Billie passed away in VJ’s arms while holding her newborn daughter.

Belle Taylor

Fans were heartbroken when Belle Taylor (Jessica Tovey) lost her battle with cancer in 2009, especially as the character had come so far since her arrival as a troubled teen three years prior.

Shortly after reuniting with Aden Jeffries (Todd Lasance), Belle discovered she had cancer but decided to keep her diagnoses a secret.

Aden learned the truth about Belle’s illness just before their wedding and the couple received the devastating news that the cancer had spread.

After saying her goodbyes and reconciling with her mum, Amanda Vale (Holly Brisley), Belle died passed away in her husband’s arms.

Meg Bowman

One of the first real Home and Away cancer storylines came in 1992 when Meg Bowman, played by the late Cathy Godbold, was revealed to be terminally ill with leukaemia.

The teenager met and quickly fell in love with Summer Bay resident Blake Dean (Les Hill), who helped her fulfil the teenager’s three final wishes before she died.

After consummating their relationship, Meg’s health deteriorated upon her return to the Bay.

As the couple headed to the beach to watch the sun rise, Meg passed away in Blake’s arms, leaving him utterly devastated.

Despite only appearing in 40 episodes, Meg’s brief appearance and exit has remained one of the most memorable storylines in the soap’s history.

Sally Fletcher and Flynn Saunders

Shortly after beginning a romance with Flynn Saunders (Martin Dingle-Wall), Sally Fletcher discovered she had ovarian cancer.

In order to treat the illness, Sally underwent a hysterectomy which left her unable to have children naturally.

Despite initially pushing Flynn away, the couple reunited and later got married.

The newlyweds were delighted when Leah Patterson (Ada Nicodemou) offered to be a surrogate mother for them, later giving birth to their daughter, Pippa.

But in a heartbreaking turn of events, Flynn discovered he was suffering from terminal skin cancer and decided to stop treatment in order to life his last months to the full.

Wanting to reaffirm his love for Sally, the couple renewed their vows as Flynn’s health continued to decline.

The doctor eventually lost his battle with cancer and passed away with Sally by his side at the age of just 33.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk