An influencer has died after a five-year battle with bone cancer that saw her lose her right leg.
Xia Jinhe, who was diagnosed with the condition when she was 18 years old, tragically passed away on Tuesday (27 October) aged 23.
Xia earned an online following from selling goods on social media to support her medical expenses.
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She was reportedly forced to support herself after losing contact with her parents in the wake of her diagnosis.
As her condition started to deteriorate, Xia asked a close friend, Mr Shen, to contact her 90-year-old grandmother, who had raised her as a child, Need To Know.
“She stayed up for two days to video call her grandmother,” he told local media.
“In the last video call, her grandmother kept calling her by her childhood nickname, urging her to hold on.”
Two days before her death in Shanghai, China, her estranged mother also arrived at the hospital, with her dad showing up a day later.
“Her parents didn’t say anything to Xiaxia, and their expressions were very calm.
“When Xiaxia closed her eyes for the last time, her mother still cried.”
Mr Shen said the young woman had originally tried to raise money for medical bills by selling crafts at a physical stall.
However, she was forced to move her business online as her condition worsened.
The photographer reportedly first met Xia in 2025 after she saw a series of “rebirth” photos he had taken and asked him to do the same for her.
It’s understood he and his mother then became close with the young woman, helping to take care of her in her vulnerable state.
He said the influencer’s dying wish was to set up a foundation to help more people in similar circumstances.
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