Nadia Sawalha shared that her best friend Hannah Gardner has died following a battle with cancer, as she wrote: ‘No need to be brave anymore darling you can now rest in peace’
Jessica Clarke Digital Reporter
18:12, 28 Dec 2025Updated 18:13, 28 Dec 2025
Before her tragic death, Nadia and her friend Hannah were left ‘reeling’ after learning a pioneering cancer drug was blocked for use in England (Image: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
Loose Women star Nadia Sawalha shared a heartfelt tribute online as she shared that her best friend Hannah Gardner has died at age 39 following a cancer diagnosis.
Nadia shared a picture of Hannah, who has stage four incurable breast cancer, wearing a sparkly dress sitting on a swing. She wrote: “Rest in peace now darling”.
Nadia added: “Our beautiful Hannah… Although we knew it was coming we are all so deeply shocked and distraught. No need to be brave anymore darling you can now rest in peace, and all the love you created. You were and will forever be deeply loved… To all the staff at The Princess Alice Hospice in Esher, the kindness and care you showed not only to Hannah, but also to her friends and family was extraordinary. Thank you. #fabfourfoever.”
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Loose Women star Nadia Sawalha shared a heartfelt tribute online as she shared that her best friend Hannah Gardner has died at age 39 (Image: Hannah Gardner)
Hannah was given her primary breast cancer diagnosis in 2013 after discovering a lump in her left breast(Image: Hannah Gardner)
Nadia’s husband Mark Adderley also added: “Just so so heartbreaking – a beautiful woman – a beautiful friend – a beautiful mother – just can’t believe it”.
Others flooded the comments with their condolences as another person added: “Beautiful Han. She loved you all so much Nadia. What a woman. She will be so missed”, while another person added: “So so sorry to hear this news”.
A third penned: “So sorry for your loss.. it’s too sad but so glad she’s not in pain. Love and hugs”.
Before her tragic death, Nadia and her friend Hannah were left ‘reeling’ after learning a pioneering cancer drug was blocked for use in England by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.
The institute said that the cost the NHS was being asked to pay for the drug was ‘too high’, despite having the potential to give Hannah another 6 months of life.
Nadia spoke about the drug and told The Daily Mail: “We’ve got this young woman, with a young autistic child, with secondary breast cancer in her liver, in her lung, and she’s also supposed to be basically begging for this drug. And it just seems brutal.”
Nadia added: “She’s a powerhouse and I do worry about that because she needs to also be looking after herself, but we’ve got her, you know, me and our group of friends are very engaged and there for in every way.
“We’re a group of friends, we all met on a trek raising money for breast cancer, about seven years ago, there’s four of us, we call ourselves the Fab Four and we say we’re holding you… She’s the youngest one in the group and she was diagnosed 11 years ago and she’s been on such a wheel, she’s been told that she’s had cancer four times and she never falters.”
Hannah was told in 2022 that she had stage four incurable breast cancer, which then spread to her liver(Image: Hannah Gardner)
Hannah joined her friend Nadia on ITV’s Loose Women in 2024 to discuss the need for the NHS to approve the drug(Image: Hannah Gardner)
Hannah was given her primary breast cancer diagnosis in 2013 after discovering a lump in her left breast. She underwent treatment but unfortunately the disease returned in 2017 and again in 2020.
Hannah was told in 2022 that she had stage four incurable breast cancer, which then spread to her liver.
Hannah shared on social media last year: “I’ve been hit with probably the worst news I’ve had yet. Progression. All tumours in my liver are growing. There are now four big ones with lots of little spots popping up. I’m scared, I can’t lie.”
Hannah joined her friend Nadia on ITV’s Loose Women in 2024 to discuss the need for the NHS to approve the drug. She said at the time: “I don’t know how long I’ve got, some statistics two to four years, some say three to five, I am 3 years in and it’s scary. It’s not a fairy tale, it only ends one way. All we can have is extra time and this drug would have given me that, more time with my daughter.”
“Six months might not sound like a long time, but it is in the world of secondary breast cancer”, she added.
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