Newlywed dies after mistaking skin cancer pain for pulled muscle

Clare and Paul Daly on their wedding day in July 2014. (Clare Daly Foundation)

A newlywed bride in the U.K. died two months after complaining about shoulder pain that she had assumed was a pulled muscle. By the time the pain became unbearable, doctors discovered Clare Daly had an aggressive form of melanoma already in an advanced stage, Liverpool Echo reported.

Daly, 29, had a mole removed a few years prior that doctors traced the cancer to, the newspaper reported. Her only chance was a pioneering dual therapy at Christie’s Hospital in Manchester, but efforts to raise funds for treatment weren’t quick enough.

“We thought dual therapy was the best chance of prolonging Clare’s life, of keeping the cancer at bay for as long as possible in the hope of them finding another new treatment,” Michael McNally, Daly’s brother, told Liverpool Echo. “It isn’t funded by the NHS (National Health Services) so we started to fundraise, but it was just too late.”

Others recalled Daly being a sun-conscious woman who reapplied sunscreen and urged others to wear a hat and sunglasses. Many who tried to fundraise for Daly were a part of the 800 people, who attended her funeral in December, and continue to remember her through the Clare Daly Foundation.

“We thought about waiting until April to launch it because that’s Clare’s 30th birthday, but we wanted to reach out to people while it was still there in their minds,” Stefanie McCartney-Washington, Daly’s close friend, told Liverpool Echo.

The foundation is planning to run marathons and host a gala in Daly’s honor on dates that were meaningful to her.