LONDON: Tom Parker of hit UK band The Wanted supported a 23-year-old Muslim woman suffering from a brain tumor just months before his own death.
Prior to dying on March 30 aged 33 from a brain tumor, Parker had become friends with Amani Liaquat, bonding over their shared struggles with the illness, the Mail Online reported.
Liaquat, a first-class law graduate who met Parker during the filming of a TV documentary, died on Feb. 21.
Her father Khuram said: “Their journey, the stories of seizures and so on were almost identical so they clicked straight away. To have him keep in touch, to have almost this lifeline from Tom, gave Amani some hope and excitement.
“She was a trapped soul, completely isolated because she couldn’t go out during the pandemic when she was sick. Tom was one of the few people battling the same disease she met in person. Their exchanges turned into almost a little conversation piece.”
When Liaquat died, Parker said on Instagram: “My thoughts and love are with her family. She was an incredible young lady. Bright, smart, funny and I had the greatest pleasure to meet her.”
He sent gifts to her family shortly before his own death. Parker was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma in October 2020.