TikTok influencer Leah Smith dies aged 22 after rare cancer battle as boyfriend pays tribute to 'amazing' star

A TikTok star who documented her battle with a rare form of cancer on the platform, and gained thousands of followers for her content, has died.

Leah Anne Smith, from Woolton, Liverpool, was suffering from a rare form of cancer that affects the bones and soft tissue called Ewing's Sarcoma. She died of the disease yesterday morning (Monday March 11) of the disease at the age of 22.

The news of her death was announced by her heartbroken boyfriend Andrew, and since then her account has been flooded with tributes to her. So, just who was Smith, what exactly is Ewing's Sarcoma and what are some of the tributes which have been left to her? Here's what you need to know.

Who was Leah Smith?

Smith was a social media influencer who used her page, @xx_leahsmith, to document her journey with cancer. She also shared videos of herself doing dances and comedy videos.

Following her diagnosis with Ewing's Sarcoma, Smith decided to turn her TikTok page to share videos of her hospital visits - and gained more than half a million followers for her honesty. She said: "I wanted to start a TikTok to express my journey and show people my life living with cancer - the ups and downs of it. People absolutely love it."

What happened to Leah Smith?

Smith was formally diagnosed with the condition in October 2019, but had been complaining of back pain for almost a year prior to the diagnosis. Speaking to the Liverpool Echo  in 2020, she said: "I had really bad back pains for 10 months. It was constant then I lost all the feeling in my left leg and I knew something was most definitely wrong."

The day before she died, her best friend Vikki issued the an update on her deteriorating health on TikTok. She said: "Leah is on end of life now and is unable to move or talk, but she is reacting to us with noises and knows we are there.

She said that her boyfriend Andrew hadn't left his girlfriend's side. "He's been an absolute rock to her throughout this journey," she said. She continued: "The main thing is that Leah is so peaceful now, she looks as beautiful as ever and we're just grateful we can be at her bedside and hold her and to comfort her through it.

"We will keep you updated as we know that's what Leah would want. She shared so much of her journey with you and its only fair that we continue to do that. Leah asked me to do this and so that is what I will do for her. We appreciate all of the love and support - it really warms our hearts and we're so grateful."

Last month, Smith told her TikTok followers that her doctors had said there was 'no point' in giving her more antibiotics and fluids because they 'weren't working anymore'.

She explained: "All the pain meds aren't working so they really just want to get me to as comfortable a state as possible. I don't know what this means for me, if it is the end of the journey. But all my family have come round and I am just going to act like I'm good and great because quite frankly, I am so so scared. I don't want to die yet. I'm sorry."

What is Ewing's Sarcoma?

Ewing's Sarcoma is a type of primary bone cancer. Sarcomas are rare cancers that develop in the supporting tissues of the body. Supporting tissues include bone, cartilage, tendons, fat and muscle.

There are two main types of sarcoma: bone sarcomas (also called primary bone cancer) and soft tissue sarcoma. Primary bone cancer can develop in any bone in the body. It can also develop in the soft tissue near bones.

The bones most commonly affected by Ewing sarcoma are pelvis, thigh (femur), shin (tibia) and ribs and shoulder blades. The disease mainly affects children and young people, with most cases diagnosed in people aged 10 to 20, but it can happen at any age, according to Macmillian Cancer Support.

What tributes have been left to Leah Smith?

Smith's boyfriend, Andrew, announced her death yesterday (Monday 11 March) in a video on TikTok. He said: "This is just a message to anyone that's followed Leah or gave her any support or any nice comments. I'm sad to say that she passed away today at around 11.30am this morning.

"I just want to say thank you to everyone. All your comments did help - she did actually read all of them. Anyone who said anything nice ever - it means more than you realise. We'll all miss Leah but we'll make sure that we never forget her.

"I want to see everyone speaking about Leah and how amazing she is and how much she helped everyone. We'll never let Leah be forgotten."

Many of Smith's followers left their own tributes to the late influencer on Andrew's video. One said: "A girl we will never forget - rest in paradise angel. Thoughts are with you all." Another said: "Rip Leah Smith, you were amazing and so strong with fighting ur battle as hard as you could and we are all so proud of you xx you will never be forgotten."

Another follower called her "a beautiful person inside and out". Another person who seemed to know Smith personally said: "Oh my girl. May she rest with the angels. The most beautiful kind girl I’ve ever spoke to. Fly high my beautiful angel."