Heartfelt tributes were paid last night to a set of twins from Ipswich who died within just four days of each other after long battles with cystic fibrosis.
John and Marie Wright, who were both 23, have been described by their family as very caring individuals who always tried to make others feel better about their situation.
Marie, who had campaigned for changes to the organ donation system so people need to “opt-out”, got a lung transplant in July last year but had an infection caused by a portacath, a small medical instrument placed under the skin. She also suffered an aneurysm.
She was admitted to Papworth Hospital on Tuesday but died the following day because of those issues.
John, a fan of classical music, had been on palliative care for about a year and was admitted to the same hospital on Easter Sunday.
He was told that his sister had passed and he died early on Saturday morning.
Speaking about her children last night, mum Margaret, 55, of Renfrew Road, said: “They were great characters. Both of them had a great sense of humour but I knew that when Marie passed away that John wouldn’t be far away.
“He always wanted his sister to have a transplant – he wasn’t worried about himself.
“They were so close, they did everything together. Because of the condition they knew what the other one was going through.
John was quiet and very sensitive.
“He had a lovely personality and was very, very caring. Marie was very outgoing, she liked to go out with friends and meet up with people.”
Both John and Marie were diagnosed with the genetic condition, which mainly affects the lungs, soon after they were born. They were started on antibiotics when they were babies.
Over the last five years they both had to be on oxygen full-time but that did not stop them doing the things they loved.
They both enjoyed the Comic Con festival and an orchestra performance in London and Marie was taking a course learning Japanese from home – she was keen to visit the country and see the blossom trees in bloom.
“They were always close – they could never be separated,” added Mrs Wright, who cared for John and Marie along with husband Tony.
When asked what people will remember about her son and daughter, she said: “Definitely the sense of humour, they had a great sense of humour and to be honest, we just used to light up whenever they were around. We are going to miss them.”
The deaths of John and Marie have come 10 years after Mrs Wright and husband Tony’s daughter Sabrina died from leukaemia.
Marie was inspired to cut her hair in memory of her sister and raised more than £1,500 to the Little Princess Trust and the Cystic Fibrosis Trust in 2013.
John and Marie will have a joint funeral at St Mary’s Church in Woodbridge, Ipswich, at 1pm on April 28.
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