Featured Image Credit: dominiquemcshain/Instagram
Topics: TikTok, Cancer, Social Media, Health
Emily Brown
Topics: TikTok, Cancer, Social Media, Health
Warning: This article contains discussion of cancer which some readers may find distressing.
TikTok star Dominique McShain has died at the age of 21 after announcing to her followers that she had just days left to live.
Dominique, who had amassed more than 200,000 followers on TikTok, took to her Instagram account to share what would be her final update on April 7.
In the post, she explained she had been given a prognosis of 'only a few days to a few weeks to live' after she was previously diagnosed with incurable colorectal cancer, which she announced in April 2024.
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Following her diagnosis, Dominique made it her mission to raise awareness about her cancer with the help of social media, and in her last post, she explained that her liver was 'failing rapidly to the point of jaundice and the cancer [was] progressing quickly'.
"At this point, I've transitioned into end-of-life care, focusing on pain relief and managing side effects, with so much time spent in both the hospital and hospice," Dominique wrote.
On April 23, it was reported that Dominique had died, with her husband, Sean, adding an emoji of an angel's wing next to her name in his Instagram bio.
The news was also confirmed by People Magazine and Today. Prior to her death, Dominique had opened up about the symptoms she experienced before she was diagnosed, explaining that the first signs came as she started her third year of university.
The content creator explained that she was 'fatigued all the time', even if she'd had a 'normal night's sleep'.
No matter how much she slept at night, the student could 'sleep another five to six hours every single day'.
Dominique added: "The other thing I had was blood in my stool. I kept switching between constipation and diarrhoea and normal [poo], but I always had blood in my stool. That was not fun."
After a few weeks, Dominique went to the doctor to have her bloods taken and learned her liver blood samples were 'abnormally high'.
Following a second blood test, her doctors noticed some changes and Dominique was told she needed an ultrasound which revealed that she had some 'massive lumps'.
Prior to the ultrasound, she also started to experience abdominal pain, a loss of appetite and getting 'dizzy' when she stood up.
She continued to feel unwell and ultimately had a biopsy, which confirmed that she had cancer.
In her final post, Dominique said she had been thinking a lot about heaven and how she would 'finally be free from the pain' she'd been experiencing.
"I'll be able to run, to breathe, to feel whole," she said. "Though it will hurt to leave you all behind, please know that I will finally be out of pain, and I will be at peace."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.