COURAGEOUS Cassie Atkinson, a young Kendal mum, has lost her brave battle against cancer.

The selfless 28-year-old, diagnosed with the terminal disease shortly after giving birth, managed to raise thousands for charity even while bedridden.

Despite fighting-off non-Hodgkin's lymphoma shortly after her son, Cody James, was born, it returned and she was given just three months to live.

She passed away at home on Kirkbarrow, Kendal, at 8.15am last Friday, April 1.

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Fighting right to the end, Cassie 'always thought there was somebody worse off than her' and organised a fundraising climb up Ben Nevis and an event at Kendal Rugby Club, raising more than £8,000 for cancer-related charities.

Known as 'Classy Cassie' to family and friends, the former Queen Katherine School and Kendal College pupil stayed positive throughout.

Her mother, Annette Atkinson, said: "She was strong all the way through it, I couldn't believe how strong she was.

"She had the idea that she could still do certain things to promote the fact that this can happen to anyone and she wanted to do something that would help towards supporting other people because she knew she needed support herself.

"Cassie was very courageous and positive and I'm glad she's now at peace."

When Cassie first fell pregnant she found a lump in her abdomen which doctors thought was a fibroid - a benign tumour.

A week after giving birth she was back in hospital at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary to have the tumour, which by then had grown to 18 centimetres in size, removed.

But during the eight-hour surgery, doctors found that what Cassie had was non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and it had spread to her liver, spleen and pancreas - the diagnosis was terminal.

"It hasn't really hit me properly," said Annette. "I've worked as a carer all my life and I had to teach myself to detach myself from situations like this but it will hit me at some point.

"I've lost my best friend and first child and I'd never wish it on anyone.

"She shouldn't have had to go through this.

"Cody James is 16 months old now and he's a beautiful little boy and he's happy, just like his mother.

"I promised her I would be there for him forever."

Her sister, Mia, 20, said: "It was a pleasure to have her as my sister.

"I'm very proud of her."

'Cassie's Girls', a group of her closest friends, scaled Britain's highest mountain as well as Helvellyn, Scafell Pike and Coniston Old Man in her honour.

In a bid to raise awareness and ensure other women do not suffer the same ordeal as her, Cassie was set to go on Good Morning Britain and tell the nation about her situation - but sadly she never got the chance.

The family praised the Kendal community who, even despite the devastating floods in December, rallied around the Atkinsons in a heartwarming display of support.

"I would like to thank the community," said Annette. "They made me feel very proud - some special people were very kind and have been incredibly generous.

"Some people who had never met her before put some money in an envelope for us.

"I'm not the type of person that asks for anything but some people were just amazing.

"Sometimes you think you're alone when a loved one is battling through chemo but the community helped and it kept Cassie going."

Annette also wants to thank Cody James' 'devoted' father, Stuart Smith, and Mia's partner, Aimee, as well as the excellent support the family received from Marie Curie nurses and doctors at Kendal's Captain French Surgery.

Cassie was born at the former Helme Chase Maternity Hospital, Kendal, and lived in Windermere until she was four-years-old before moving to Australia, where she took-up surfing and gymnastics.

After six-and-a-half years Down Under, she moved back to Bowness, then on to Staveley before settling in Kendal.

Cassie was an avid member of Goodly Dale Community Primary School's football team and enjoyed her time at Queen Katherine School before studying IT at Kendal College.

She worked at the Max Spielmann store on Market Place, Kendal, before taking maternity leave shortly before she was diagnosed with cancer.

Former store manager, Margaret Thould, said: "She was like an adopted daughter to me. I used to call her my little star. She was so positive and we were hoping that she was going to take over as manager one day."

In her spare time, Cassie enjoyed going to music festivals, such as Creamfields and Radio 1's Big Weekend in Carlisle, proving that 'in the short amount of time she had, she did a lot."

Her funeral will be held at St Martin's Church, Bowness, at 1pm on Wednesday, April 13.