Influencer Shanice Bennett Dies at 26 After Documenting Breast Cancer Battle
Shanice Bennett, who gained viral fame on TikTok for sharing her journey with breast cancer, has passed away at the age of 26, her family announced.
Influencer Shanice Bennett has died at the age of 26, her family announced on Saturday via a post shared to her TikTok page. Bennett had garnered a significant following for documenting her years-long battle with breast cancer.
"Yesterday was a difficult day where we had to say goodbye to our beautiful Shanice," her family wrote. "She passed away peacefully within the comfort of her home surrounded by us family. One thing she said was 'cancer isn't winning this fight, I will be bringing it down with me' and that is exactly what she’s done."
Bennett, who was based in the UK, was first diagnosed with stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma in 2023. The cancer later progressed to stage 4, spreading to her bones, liver, lungs, and lymph nodes.
On TikTok, where she had over 39,000 followers, Bennett frequently posted about her health journey, aiming to raise awareness and support others facing similar challenges. "Her aim was to educate people, and make a difference to people’s lives which she definitely has," her family stated.
Her family expressed gratitude for the support from her followers, noting that donations enabled Bennett to pursue a new treatment. "Without your support she wouldn’t have had the opportunity to go on her latest treatment ENHERTU, [which gave] us that extra time as a family to make so many lovely memories," they wrote.
Previously, Bennett had shared on her GoFundMe page that her tumors had worsened significantly, making her current treatment ineffective. She explained that without a new treatment plan, she had only a matter of months to live. Although she had previously been hesitant about strong chemotherapy, she decided to pursue ENHERTU, an expensive treatment costing $4,797 per cycle every three weeks, to prolong her life and improve its quality.
Bennett had updated her GoFundMe in early March, stating that she had begun the new treatment. Her family concluded their announcement by thanking supporters for their generosity, which allowed them to create cherished memories together.