Amy shares her heartbreaking link to her great-grandmother, who died of cancer at the age of 39 (Image: BBC)
Amy Dowden struggled to hold back tears after uncovering a heartbreaking family secret.
The Strictly Come Dancing star is featuring in the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?, during which she unearthed remarkable details about her ancestry and long-lost relatives.
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In the course of her research, Amy discovered that a 13-year-old family member had been murdered, prompting her to delve deeper into the truth behind the tragic event.
She also uncovered that a relative had suffered from breast cancer, leaving her visibly emotional as she drew parallels with her own courageous battle against the disease.
In May 2023, then aged 32, Amy revealed she had been diagnosed with breast cancer after finding a lump in her breast before her honeymoon with newlywed husband Ben Jones, reports Wales Online.
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Amy Dowden breaks down in tears in an upcoming episode of Who Do You Think You Are? (Image: BBC/It Takes Two)
During her appearance on Who Do You Think You Are?, Amy sets out to learn more about her father’s side of the family, having discovered that her grandfather was adopted.
She learned that his mother, her great-grandmother Louisa, passed away at a young age, leaving several young children behind.
However, the truth behind Louisa’s tragedy leaves Amy in tears after hearing of Louisa’s diagnosis. The Welsh dancer finds out that Louisa died in 1921 at the age of 39, of breast cancer.
“Oh my goodness,” Amy said, speechless for a moment. “That’s made me a little bit emotional.”
The Welsh dancer was diagnosed with cancer in May 2023 and bravely documented her health journey (Image: BBC)
While the camera crew offers Amy a moment to pause, she tearfully shared, “She was only in her 30s. I wonder if there’s a link between her and me.”
Amy went on: “What an awful few years they went through, the war and then this cancer diagnosis, never mind then the Lockout with the collieries.
“My mum had breast cancer and witnessing her go through it, that was tough. Just the thought of the family having to go through what we went through, and it would have been worse then.
“But also, knowing the timing as well. Poor Bill, losing his wife to breast cancer and then having six children.
“Also, she had one of the same type of breast cancers as me, and I’d love to find out more, did she get surgery, did she have treatment? Was there a chance of cure?”
She added, “Knowing what she went through is horrible, but I’m lucky, I’m still here; it took her life, so it’s a bit raw.”
Amy was partnered with Thomas Skinner on Strictly last year (Image: BBC)
Hearing of the treatment that wouldn’t have been available for Louisa, with cancer at the time known as an incurable disease, Amy shared: “I can’t imagine, I know what it’s like to have a cancer diagnosis, but I’m a lucky one, I’ve been able to come out the other side.”
Louisa’s six children were aged between 11 years old and just one year old, including Amy’s grandfather Frank, who was informally adopted after her death.
“You instantly just feel for these children,” Amy said. “To lose their mum, the girls grew up without a mother and probably also had to become a mother really to the younger siblings.”
She continued, “It’s heartbreaking to see a family go through losing a mum. I couldn’t imagine what it was like to be told you’ve got cancer, and knowing then that was a death sentence.
“I’d imagine Louisa and Bill had to make a very difficult decision, most likely together, about my grandfather Frank, and that must have been absolutely heartbreaking.”
