Tribute to be paid to Alice Byron at graduation

A tribute will be paid at this morning’s Graduation Ceremony to Alice Byron, an English Literature student who passed away last week after a battle with cancer.

An email was sent to staff and students at yesterday explaining that a fitting tribute at the ceremony will “celebrate her life, and applaud the award for her degree”.

The third year student still achieved a 2:1 despite her illness, proudly submitting her dissertation from a hospital ward.

Alice kept her friends and family updated about her illness through her blog, where she retained her witty and incredible spirit, despite writing from hospital.

Her poignant yet charming posts touched many people, even those whom she had never met before, in which she would give a frank depiction of her experiences with cancer, whilst maintaining a sense of fun and humour.

Alice also worked closely alongside Cardiff Marrow in order to recruit more young people to the stem cell donor register.

She encouraged hundreds of people to join the Anthony Nolan register, a charity supporting those with blood cancer.

Fellow third year English student Shannen said: “She did the same course as me but I’m so sad I never knew her.  She was such an incredible writer and made people endlessly proud.”

The English department has communicated its sympathy to Alice’s family, and the university will still award her degree posthumously.

For more information about the stem cell donor register and Alice’s legacy, go to the Cardiff Marrow Facebook page or visit Anthonynolan.org.