Camilla Row, the wife of Hallmark star Brennan Elliott, has died. She was 45.
The 49-year-old actor announced that Row had passed away after a battle with stage 4 gastric cancer in an emotional post that he shared on Instagram Saturday.
“There is no easy way to say this but I know my wife @camilla_row would have wanted me to thank every person from all over the world who prayed for her over the last 8 years she suffered immeasurably trying to survive and live with #stage4gastriccancer,” Elliott, 49, wrote in the heartfelt caption of his post, which featured a photo of Row standing on a beach while smiling and holding a drink.
“It is with a soul-crushing, devastated heart that my beloved wife #cami passed away at 5:28 this morning,” he continued. “Our babies and I lost our rock, a person who not only was the love of my life, my soulmate, my best friend and lover but the toughest strongest fearless person I have ever met in my life and the greatest mother to her babies.”
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“The pain she endured only I might know but assure all who loved her she is in peace with no more pain. You are with the lord now my queen!” Elliott wrote with two prayer hands emojis. “You are free! Heaven is a far better place with you in it my love. THANKYOU for being the best wife, mother and friend I’ve ever known.”
“What you did for the #gastriccancer community was immeasurable, but what you did for me as a man will last forever,” the actor added. “For any of you who met or knew her your life was blessed because of her presence. I love and am in love and will always be in love with you my baby! I know u r dancing and are on vacation in heaven and free from the grips of cancer. When the lord calls me and it’s my time I will c u in heaven and we will start dancing again.!!”
“I will always be your hot mess! Missing you on this plane forever but will c u soon! THANKYOU Cami for being YOU!” Elliott concluded.
The “Crossroads Mysteries” star and Row, who was a clinical psychologist, married in 2011. The pair shared son Liam and daughter Luna.
In January, Row shared an update on her health with her followers on her private Instagram account.
“One day at a time and I know God has a plan for me,” she wrote, according to People magazine. “A series of surgeries and hospitalizations have left me weak and out of treatment but I am thankful everyday of each second of life.”
In a 2024 interview with Orange Coast magazine, Row recalled that she was first diagnosed with stage 1 stomach cancer in 2018. She said the diagnosis came after she underwent an endoscopy following “two years of having reflux pain that wouldn’t go away.”
“Everyone said I was so lucky to have caught it early. All the doctors said, ‘We can cure you,’ So I went straight to surgery to remove my stomach along with 47 lymph nodes.”
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After the surgery, Row said her medical team told her the cancer was unlikely to recur, but masses in her ovaries were discovered in 2021 when she underwent a routine CT scan.
“Further testing later found them to be of stomach cancer origin,” she said. “I went from a stage 1 survivor to a stage 4 patient overnight. It was a lot to process. A lot of the data was suggesting that I had months to live. But I was not ready to die.”
Row explained that she initially didn’t publicly reveal her diagnosis because she “never wanted to impact” Elliott’s career.
“But when I was diagnosed stage 4, I felt a real duty to become an advocate for other stomach cancer patients,” she said. “And I had to be an advocate for myself.”
“What’s helped me cope is giving back to the stomach cancer community – leading support groups,” Row explained. “Letting people know that you have to speak up for yourself and empower yourself with information. To know that I’m making some sort of difference makes the cancer part suck a little less.”
In April 2022, Elliott spoke out about his wife’s cancer battle for the first time.
“Those closest to me know that my Wife Cami has had several bouts with cancer in the past but now she embarks on a new journey as a Stage IV metastatic gastric cancer patient,” he wrote in an Instagram post.
“There is no one I consider braver, stronger, more Fearless even when you’re Faced with a sinister opponent who never plays fair,” the “unREAL” actor continued.
“As you all know me to be a very private person, this feels scary and exposing but If there is any hope that her story can help Even one person, then her cancer Experience Was Not Done in vain,” Elliott added.
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