My identical twin and I fell ill with the ‘worst flu ever’… she never recovered and weeks later died at just 35

WHEN Kym Wilkes fell unwell with “the worst flu”, her twin sister, Emma Snape, checked-in on her constantly. The pair, then 34 years old and both mums, were “inseparable”, and Emma was Kym’s maid of honour for her upcoming wedding, in October 2024. Kym Wilkes and twin sister Emma Snape both fell ill with the flu around the same time Credit: Baeur While Kym recovered from the flu, Emma’s temperature spiked and she ended up in A&E Credit: Baeur “She’d helped me with all sorts for the wedding – the flowers, cake tasting and of course, she’d come with me dress shopping,” says Kym, from Leyland, Lancashire. “Emma and I were identical twins and we’d always been inseparable. “It was a given that she’d be my maid of honour when I tied the knot to my fiancé Zack, later in the year.” But as Kym began recovering from her flu, Emma got a temperature that she couldn’t shift. “Emma started feeling unwell,” says Kym, a mum-of-three. “‘You must have caught it off me,’ I said to her. “Five days later, her temperature continued to sky-rocket so I took her to A&E. “Her partner, Jake, stayed at home to look after her young sons. “As we sat in the waiting room, I looked over at Emma – her face red and clammy – and thought she really doesn’t look well. “When Emma was finally seen, doctors listened to her breathing and rushed her for a CT scan on her lungs. “A doctor diagnosed her with inflammation on her lungs and pneumonia. “Emma was kept in hospital while doctors monitored her and pumped her full of fluids. “But a week later, she was back home and seemed more like herself.” Relieved, Kym expected Emma, who was a mum to two young boys, to make a full recovery, and when she popped round later that week, she found her playing with her son. “It seemed like she’d turned a corner,” says Kym. “Only, then she went downhill again. “Doctors called her into hospital for a follow-up CT scan.” Kym, their mum and Jake all went with her and worried as the doctors looked at Emma’s scans. “There was a lot of mumbling and frowning,” she says. “Moments later, doctors sat us down. “‘We’ve found several small lumps on your lungs,’ they told Emma. ‘I’m sorry, it could be lung cancer’. “I held her hand tightly. “Doctors ordered a lung biopsy and Emma was in and out of hospital for different tests.” Weeks later, in July 2024, the family were together at Emma’s house. Doctors initially thought Emma might have lung cancer and she had to have a biopsy Credit: Baeur Kym tried to keep Emma distracted in hospital so she got her beautician to do her eyebrows Credit: Baeur “As Emma answered a video call from the hospital, we all went completely silent,” says Kym. As the doctor told them it “wasn’t lung cancer”, they felt relieved – but only for a moment. “The doctors explained that Emma had epithelioid haemangioendothelioma (EHE) – an extremely rare cancer that grew in the cells that made up the blood vessels. “I felt dread course through my body and the room spun as I tried to take it in. “Emma’s face was pale.” Emma, who was diagnosed in July 2024, was told her cancer didn’t react well to chemo or radiotherapy, so doctors planned to start her on immunosuppressant drugs to try to stabilise her tumours. “But as Emma hung up the video call, she was stunned,” Kym remembers. “She said, ‘They’ve said it’s terminal’.” “Terrified for Emma, our whole family pulled together and rallied round.” Around 14 people are diagnosed with EHE, a type of soft tissue sarcoma, every year in England. Symptoms of EHE in the lungs can include a cough that doesn’t go away, shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing up blood. It can also affect the liver, bones, soft tissue and skin. Kym says: “Treatment helped for a short while, then Emma started getting stomach pains and nausea. “I held her hair back as she threw up in the loo constantly. “It was devastating to see my twin struggling when there was nothing I could do to make it better.” At a check-up weeks later, the family received more horrific news. “The cancer was now in part of her stomach,” says Kym. “More tests showed Emma had poor kidney function and needed an operation to fit a kidney drain.” All Emma worried about was that the surgery the following week was happening during Kym’s hen do. “Emma had helped to plan an amazing shindig in Portugal,” says Kym, who told her only to worry about her health. “Waiting for surgery and at risk of kidney failure, it was the day before we were due to fly out that Emma had to admit she wouldn’t be able to come. “The getaway was so bittersweet. “While the week was wonderful, and I was spoilt with a booze cruise on a private boat, a karaoke night and plenty of sunbathing, there was an Emma-shaped hole in my heart.” Emma’s surgery was a success and in the lead-up to the wedding, Emma “refused to pull focus”. Kym was worried that Emma wouldn’t make it to her wedding, but she was discharged from hospital the day before and was there throughout the celebration Credit: Baeur What is epithelioid haemangioendothelioma? Epithelioid haemangioendothelioma (EHE) is an extremely rare type of sarcoma cancer that grows inside the cells that make up blood vessels. The cancer affects around 4 out of 10 million people every year, according to the EHE Rare Cancer Charity. In England, around 14 people get diagnosed every year. It is most common in adults aged 30 to 50. EHE can happen anywhere in the body, but it is most common in: lungs liver bones soft tissue, such as muscle or skin EHE behaves differently in different people. In some people, it grows very slowly and may stay stable for a long time. In others, it grows more quickly or spreads to other parts of the body. Some people are diagnosed with more than one tumour at the same time, or with tumours in more than one part of the body. This is called multifocal EHE. Symptoms depend on the size of the tumour and where it is in your body. If EHE is in the lungs, symptoms can include a cough that doesn’t go away, shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing up blood. For EHE in the liver, symptoms may include pain in your tummy, feeling sick, tiredness, weight loss that cannot be explained and a fever. In the bones, symptoms are commonly bone pain, particularly at night, a lump or swelling and bones that break more easily. And if EHE is in the soft tissue or skin, symptoms may include a lump that gets bigger or is changing and changes in skin colour or texture. Sources: Sarcoma UK and EHE Rare Cancer Charity But with only a week to go, she was back in hospital with suspected sepsis. “We both knew she might not be able to be [at the wedding],” says Kym. “Still, we remained hopeful. “I even brought my beautician into hospital to do her brows for the big day. “Thankfully, the day before my wedding, Emma was discharged. “She slept in my bed that night, just like when we were younger, and woke up in great spirits. “As we popped a bottle of prosecco, I couldn’t stop smiling. “Emma looked beautiful in her maroon gown, and it meant the world to have her there.” Emma danced on chairs during the celebration saying she felt “the best I’ve felt in ages”. “It was hard to believe she’d only just come out of hospital,” says Kym. “But just weeks later, my poor sister was hit with another bout of pneumonia. “It was horrible to see my strong sister face something so tough. “I wanted to do something to help.” Kym decided to fundraise for the EHE Rare Cancer Charity, signing up to do the Lancashire Loop – a half marathon – to raise cash. “On the day, the rain poured down and I squelched through the mud, but Emma was there to cheer me on at the finish line. “Alongside other fundraising efforts from family and friends, we raised over £30,000 for the charity.” Emma’s cancer was so rare, and spreading, that the family had no idea how long she had left. Despite “slowly losing the battle”, Kym says: “On some days, you wouldn’t even know she was sick as she did handstands in the park with the kids.” She was having treatment and hospital stays at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, which the family praise. By August 2025, the medications Emma was on started to cause her incredible amounts of pain and she was taken to a hospice for pain management. Kym says: “Things got scary and at one point we were told Emma may only have weeks left,” says Kym. “We arranged to have her come home and have her final days surrounded by her home and family. “She [had] started to put on weight for the first time in ages and she seemed to be getting stronger day-by-day. “But then, her kidneys became blocked and Emma begun to rapidly decline almost overnight. “Sitting by her bedside, she could no long speak, but as I chatted away to her, I felt her gently squeeze my hand.” A few days later, on October 16, 2025, Emma passed away surrounded by her family at the age of 35. Kym, who was pregnant with her third child at the time, says: “The grief was overwhelming. We’d spent our entire lives together and I had no idea how I was going to carry on without her.” A month after her death, Kym and Zack’s daughter was born, who they named Emmie. “I know that Emma would have loved to have met her, she would have been the most wonderful aunt,” says Kym. Almost a year since her passing, Kym says it still doesn’t feel real, and she misses her every day. The family continue to fundraise, now for Clatterbridge Cancer Centre. Kym says: “Without my twin, my life will never be the same, but I know Emma wanted me to live life to the full so that’s all I can do now.”