Zoleka Mandela, the prolific author and granddaughter of the legend, Nelson Mandela, has passed away at the age of 43. She died after a long and severe battle with metastatic cancer.
Confirming her death in a statement posted on her Instagram account on Tuesday, September 26, 2023, her family revealed that recent scans showed visible disease progression, including lung fibrosis and several emboli.
“Zoleka passed away on the evening of Monday surrounded by friends and family. Our sincerest gratitude to the medical team that took care of her,” the statement read.
Zoleka’s health worsened by September 2023 when she was admitted to the hospital for an ongoing treatment. The metastatic cancer had covered various parts of her body, including her hip, liver, lung, pelvis, brain, and spinal cord.
Taking to Instagram a day before her admission into the hospital, she shared her latest medical update.
“I had a CT Scan administered a few weeks back, which has shown that I have blood clots as well as Fibrosis in my lung. This explains the chest pains I had been feeling. My Medical Oncologist has recommended blood thinners and Oral Chemo,”
“I am yet to receive feedback regarding my bone scan, to establish whether I have cancer beyond my ribs. I am hanging on by a thread. Thanking you all for your outpouring of love, prayer, and support. Peace. Passion. Positivity,” she shared in a post.
In early August, Zoleka had revealed her failing health:
“From what she’s told me, cancer in the bones cannot be eradicated, nor can it be cured. I have bone metastasis. What do I tell my children? How do I tell them that this time around I may not get to live my life as a survivor? How do I tell them everything will be OK when it’s not? I’m dying … I don’t want to die,” Zoleka revealed.