21 December 2023 , 08:52
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Georgia Harrison has recalled the "absolute trauma" of losing her best friend to leukaemia a few days before Christmas.
The former Love Island star had been pals with Cenk Fahri since childhood. When he was 17 he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a form of blood cancer that affects the white blood cells and 800 people a year in the UK.
In 2015, he received a bone marrow transplant from his brother Cengiz. But sadly it wasn’t enough to save him and Cenk died on December 21, 2021 at the age of just 26. Georgia, 29, describes that year as the “worst Christmas of my life”.
Speaking out about losing her close friend, Georgia - who got reality star Stephen Bear jailed and helped change laws on revenge porn - is now backing Leukaemia UK’s Christmas Appeal as she joins the fight to find a cure for the disease, which kills nearly 5,000 people a year in the UK and is the most common form of cancer in children.
Georgia with best pal 'Cenky', who died from leukaemia two years ago (Instagram)
Georgia is now backing Leukaemia UK's Christmas Appeal to help fund research into the disease (Getty Images)Even though her "cheeky" pal Cenk had been ill for a long time, Georgia said his death two years ago still came as a “shock”. She told the charity via MailOnline: “You’d think after all that time of him being ill, it wouldn’t come as a shock – where he’d had so many treatments and overcome it so many times. I wasn’t ready to accept that he would actually die. I just remember being absolutely so traumatised.
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“Even when he was given six months to live, he still convinced us all that he was going to be fine. I remember my best friend’s mum called me to tell me the news. She said, ‘Cenk’s gone’, and I said, ‘Gone where?” Gone to the shop? What do you mean gone?’ And she said, ‘No he’s gone, he’s passed away.’
Recalling the “devastating” moment Cenk told her he had been diagnosed with leukaemia, Georgia said she “couldn’t stop crying” as “at age 17, you don’t expect to be told that your best friend has cancer”.
Despite his illness, she said Cenk always stayed “so positive” during his treatments and that it “humbled” her and taught her to value her own good health. After his bone marrow transplant Cenk got “five to six more years of life” where he was healthy.
During that time Georgia said they “travelled the world, he had such a great life and it was all thanks to the treatment”. But tragically Cenk fell ill again and passed away four days before Christmas in 2021.
Describing him as being “so full of life”, Georgia shared Cenk was “cheeky” and “fun-loving” with “the biggest heart”, adding: “He had this incredible way about him - everywhere he went, people just loved him.”
This is the reason she is appealing for help to raise the vital funds Leukaemia UK need to support life-changing research into the disease. Georgia said: “There is so much more that can be done. There are so many treatments to be discovered. I don’t want families to keep having that empty seat at the dinner table at Christmas. I want there to be a cure for leukaemia, so the best thing we can do is fund research and try to find more treatments.”
Fiona Hazell, Chief Executive of Leukaemia UK, said: “Christmas can be a very difficult time for families impacted by leukaemia, whether because they’ve lost a love one, or because someone close to them is undergoing gruelling treatment that sadly is not always successful.
“We firmly believe that research has the power to stop leukaemia devastating lives. That’s why we’re investing in world-class research to find kinder, more effective treatments. We can’t do that without support from the public. We’re so grateful to Georgia and to Cenk’s family for bravely sharing their story to raise awareness. Please consider giving what you can to Leukaemia UK this Christmas and help us stop leukaemia from devastating more lives.”
*You can donate to the Leukaemia UK Christmas Appeal here