Health

The 15-year-old cancer patient who dueted with Florence & The Machine in a viral video earlier this year has died. Karinya Chen, who battled bone cancer for five years, passed away in Austin, Texas. She touched millions of people around the world when she perfectly harmonized with the British Grammy-winning band while lying in her hospice ward in May. Just five days before her death on Saturday, she spoke with remarkable strength as she contemplated her disease. She said: 'I think the biggest thing is not to worry and fear.... You just have to remember that there's always tomorrow and if you take it one day at a time and just tell yourself don't worry and don't take things for granted and tell yourself that you are loved and you are blessed then it makes it a lot easier to fight.'

Puberty makes everyone's teenage years a dragged-out nightmare. But at least we all going through it at more or less the same time. Imagine hitting that awkward phase in your late 20s. That is exactly what happened to E! News reporter Ken Baker - whose memoir is the subject of a new movie starring Jane Lynch: The Late Bloomer. Baker, now 46, experienced an almost unheard-of hormonal transition due to a benign brain tumor pressing on his pituitary gland. The tumor caused a hormone imbalance in his body called hyperprolactinemia, which over-produced the female hormone prolactin, stunting his natural development. It meant his body lactated milk from the nipples, 10 times more than a breastfeeding mother. His body was soft and lacking muscle. And he had absolutely no sex drive.

Nathan Box (left), seven, from Hornchurch, was struck down by a mystery illness two years ago - but doctors assumed it was epilepsy. However, a string of tests at hospital (right) revealed he was suffering from an incredibly rare brain tumour called Hypothalamic Hamartoma. The side effects of his condition means he breaks into a grin shortly before having a seizure - of which he can have up to 25 in a day. But the family were left heartbroken after the NHS refused to fund a miracle operation in the US. Instead Nathan will remain on drugs to lessen the symptoms for the rest of his life - not cure them.

Tariq Idrees, a dentist and owner of a private clinic in Manchester, advises people to drink through straws because the liquid bypasses the teeth. Here he reveals the quickest ways to stain your smile. He says you should avoid tomato ketchup (top left) because it's acidic and rich in colour and steer clear of ice lollies (top middle) which contain colourants which stick to the teeth. Fruit teas (top right) are rich in colour which leave surface staining while strawberries (bottom right) are high in their acid content. Any type of cola (bottom middle) is bad for staining teeth and chicken tikka masala (bottom left) contains a lot of turmeric which can easily stain teeth.

Most of us shudder at the idea of going for a one-hour run, even in the best of shape. A marathon? Not a chance.  Enter Cheryl Hile to put us all to shame: she plans to run seven marathons on seven continents by June next year - despite having multiple sclerosis.

Lucy Beall Lott (left), 17, from Santa Fe, was diagnosed with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB) when she was born. Her condition means just picking objects up can cause her fragile skin to shred off, leaving her with painful blisters and wounds (right). Whenever she swallows the skin in her throat is severely damaged - putting her at risk of choking to death. When she was 13, she had just a 3mm opening in her throat - forcing surgeons to stretch her skin in a complex procedure (inset). She's suffered hurtful comments from strangers including that she would be 'hot' if it wasn't for her scarred legs and arms throughout her childhood. Despite the vicious remarks, she's adamant she has nothing to hide since and refuses to let her condition hold her back.

Simone Blount (left, with her son when he was a baby and right) took her four-year-old son Stephen to the Mattel Play! centre, Liverpool, for a day out. But she claims that, after queuing for more than 20 minutes, a female member of staff leaned over her desk to look at Stephen and said the centre was 'unsuitable for children like him'. She added that Stephen was 'absolutely heartbroken'. Mattel Play! (inset) deny the claims and insist a member of staff 'mistook' Stephen for a baby in a pushchair and was 'just trying to help'.

Candice Dent (left), 35, from Kentucky, suffers from aquagenic urticaria - which triggers an outbreak of hives (top right and bottom right) if she comes into contact with water. But she also suffers from dermatographia, meaning her skin becomes itchy and swollen when touched - which she said is far worse. It prevents her from wearing certain clothes and sleeping on certain materials because they will cause welts in her skin. Medication has proved to be ineffective, meaning all she can do when she has a break out is wait for the itchy hives to disappear.

Victoria Vega, 24, from California, has dissociative identity disorder which started during her troubled childhood. It results in her different personalities taking control of her body at any given time. These personalities include Southern Belle Allie, tough New Jersey gal Goldie, AGE, and dinosaur-loving Senka, 5. She also has quieter 'alters' Citizen, Lucy Lovelace and Celia. Miss Vega says she does not consider it a disorder and loves her different personalities which mean life is 'never boring'. She blogs about her experiences and has even written a memoir about her experiences with the condition. 'I hate to call it a disorder because I genuinely don't feel sick. I love my alters and without them, I promise I would not be here today,' she said.

Columnist Bel Mooney (pictured above in each decade of her life) has opened up about her life and shared her wisdom. Tips include: Never go to bed without cleaning and moisturising, don't think you must use expensive products, exercise at least twice a week, eat well and choose one quick, easy beauty product to use each day for a morale boost.

NSW woman Dianne Johnston (pictured right with husband Shane) has opened up about the emotional toll of IVF, revealing she lost 11 embryos before finally travelling to South Africa for treatment and falling pregnant aged 49 (left). She said IVF was 'heartbreaking' and 'soul destroying' to go through but she has since given birth to a baby boy, Liam (inset)

Frankie Lavis, from Plymouth, was diagnosed with spina bifida - a condition which causes her spine to not develop properly - during her mother's 20-week scan (top left). Surgeons operated on her while her mother was in the 24th week of pregnancy - just two weeks short of the time limit for such an invasive procedure. She became the first baby in Britain to have pioneering spinal surgery while inside the womb. It was touch and go whether she would survive and her parents were told she would still spend her life in a wheelchair. However, the operation was a success and she was still able to use her lower body when she was born (bottom left). And now aged two, Frankie has defied all expectations and can walk with a frame (right) better than her parents ever imagined.

A former Marine sergeant who lost all four limbs to a bomb in Afghanistan has received a double arm transplant.  John Peck, 31, stepped on an improvised explosive device (IED) in 2010, leaving him bound to a wheelchair with metal prosthetics.  But now, after six years as a quadruple amputee, the decorated veteran has made it through a 14-hour operation to receive two new arms. 

Chloe Lynam, 18, from the Wirral, Merseyside, first noticed red blotches appearing on her skin while she was carrying baby Jacob (pictured together left). But as her pregnancy progressed, she was left with huge wounds and scaly skin - as doctors diagnosed her with psoriasis. By the time her son was born, more than half of her body was covered in the sores (right and inset) - leaving her unable to cuddle him because it was so painful. It became so bad that strangers often looked at her in disgust and assumed she had just had an allergic reaction. She believes it was triggered by hormonal changes when she became pregnant - a known cause of the skin condition.

Jodie Palmer (left), 23, from Wolverhampton, has suffered from agoraphobia - the fear of open or public places - since she was just three years old. The condition hit an all-time low five years ago following her mother's death - which she believes was the reason why she was house-bound for five years. She was given a daily cocktail of anxiety medication, desperate for her life to get back on track and conquer her fear to allow her to play with her children, Petal, three, and Oakley, 19-months-old (both right) outside. And after just one hour with a hypnotherapist (inset), Miss Palmer was able to leave her house for the first time in five years.

Charlene Colechin, 18, from Derbyshire, was sick and had a headache when she came home from her job as a hairdresser last month. By the next morning, a rash had started to develop and she was in pain. Her family called and ambulance and she was rushed to Chesterfield Royal Hospital. Doctors battled to save her life as the infection caused her organs to fail (left). She now faces losing her toes and feet after it caused irreversible damage (right). She has bravely shared her pictures on Facebook to raise awareness of the signs of meningitis.

Chloe Munnings, 24, from Norfolk, started surgery at the age of 21 and says she won't stop altering her look until she's achieved her idea of physical perfection including 'big boobs, big lips, a small nose and a tiny waist'. The webcam model used to weigh 14 stone 7lbs (left) but managed to drop more than four stone in her early twenties. However she says her new, slimmer figure has only led to yet more insecurities about her appearance despite spending thousands on surgery and doing regular 'corset training' (inset) to achieve the perfect hourglass figure.

Pam Warren, 49 (left), from Reading, suffered life-changing injuries in the Paddington Rail Crash 17 years ago. She became known as the 'lady in the mask' (right) after having skin grafts to her face to repair the damage done (inset) when fire ripped through the carriage she was in, peeling layers of skin off her hands, leg and face. Since then she has helped other burns victims, campaigned for crash survivors and even forced herself to travel by train again. Pam recalled that horrific October day in 1999 to presenter Aled Jones as she appears on a new BBC show called Going Back Giving Back, which will be broadcast today on the 17th anniversary of the crash.

Mike and Kate Brandon, 31 and 33, of Bristol, travelled to Pennsylvania's Abramson Cancer Centre for a CAR T-Cell therapy trial, which they believe is Mr Brandon's last chance at staying alive (pictured inset during therapy). Since beginning treatment in May, his family have now announced his second biopsy has come back clear. Mr Brandon was able to afford the £400,000 cost of the treatment thanks to a huge fundraising campaign which raised the money in just two days. Mr Brandon is battling acute lymphoblastic leukaemia for the second time after the disease returned more aggressive than ever following his wedding (left). The couple are now starting a new campaign #Donate4TCells to support others who are facing a terminal diagnosis. 'We are absolutely over the moon and enjoying every moment together. We have more tests ahead but, right now, we couldn't be happier,' said Mrs Brandon.

Kathleen Torres, 29, from Grafton, Ohio, noticed the unusual shape of her son Caleb's head after he was born (pictured right together after surgery) - but dismissed it as bruising from the delivery. The back of his skull was elongated and rectangular, while his forehead was pointed (left). She hoped it would even out over time, but decided to take him for tests when he was four months old to be sure it was normal. Doctors revealed he had craniosynostosis - a condition where the bones in the skull fuse prematurely before the baby's brain has had chance to fully grow - after a CT scan (inset). The mother-of-four was told he needed life-saving surgery to reshape his head or risk permanent brain damage.

FEMAIL has found the same foods vary dramatically in terms of nutritional content according to which restaurant you go to after it compared six foods at six different chains. From left to right: Burger King had the unhealthiest chocolate milkshake (610 calories), while Five Guys' Cheeseburger contained more calories than any other at 830 calories. McDonald's Crispy Chicken Salad topped the list as it contains 265 calories, while Five Guys' fries were the unhealthiest, containing 953 calories. Burger King had the unhealthiest chicken burger, as its royale contains 570 calories. And McDonald's had the worst caramel sundae, containing 344 calories.

The 42-year-old British-Australian singer made his name flashing his abs in music videos for his hits Mysterious Girl and Flava. But he claims that was nothing, now he feels fitter than ever - despite eating chocolate every day and spending no more than 45 minutes in the gym at a time. Once a year he does a juice-only detox, to balance out his regular McDonald's cravings, and he rarely drinks alcohol.

Roman Allen (right), from Milton Keynes, has suffered with eczema on his face since he was six months old. But his mother, Danielle (left), 25, says her son - whose cheeks crack and bleed as a result of the skin condition - regularly gets shunned in the street by strangers who accuse him of being 'contagious'. Some parents even recoil from Roman if they see him close by - snatching their own children away - wrongly fearing they will contract his condition. Mrs Allen, 25, said: 'I just wish people would stop treating my son like some kind of modern day leper.'

A 60-year-old woman has described her joy after delivering healthy twin boys. Claudette Cook married her husband Ross, 55, 10 years ago after meeting in church in Pike County, Indiana.  A year later she was told, at the age of 51, that she was too old to have children. Now, after exploring all kinds of assisted reproductive technology, the couple have become parents through IVF.