Influencer dies at 28 after raising awareness for the danger of skin cancer

Sydney writer and influencer Natalie Fornasier has tragically died after a long battle with metastatic melanoma.

The Sydney Morning Herald confirmed the 28-year-old had passed away on January 14.

Her obituary notice said a funeral service would be held and extended to friends and family on February 3.

They added: “Natalie wished for attendees not to wear black.”

Fornasier was diagnosed at just 20 years old after spotting a dark mole on her toe that had changed shape.

Fornasier subsequently dedicated her life to raising skin cancer awareness.

But eight years after her initial trip to the doctor, the Sydney-based writer revealed her illness had become terminal.

In a heartbreaking post penned on December 8, she wrote: “The last four months have been brutal. At the end of July, I received the news that my cancer was now terminal and had months left to live.

“It’s a word I had been skating around for years, a word that terrified me because I always knew it could be a possibility.”

She added as her health began to decline, she sank into the ‘deepest hole of depression’ as she leant on her husband, Alexander, for support.

She continued: “I’ve fallen into oblivion crying for Alexander, the heartbreak, and the love I would be leaving - for the life we were supposed to have.”

Fornasier also shared a GoFundMe page for her husband and family, so they could ‘grieve without financial worry for what’s around the corner’.

A couple of weeks later on December 28, Fornasier wrote her last Instagram update, revealing to her 35,000 followers that she had been placed in palliative care for four weeks.

She revealed that since being relocated to hospital her body has become increasingly sore, and she couldn't walk without assistance.

But, despite her situation becoming dire, the 28-year-old remained in high spirits.

She wrote: “If my time here has taught me anything - it’s that time moves like a river.

"You’re unable to see the beginning or the end but you can feel it - so you better make the most of it.

“Even if that means napping next to your loved one for hours so long as you’re together. I’m also thankful for the jolly trolley which I didn’t know existed until I got here.”