Dame Tessa Jowell dies aged 70

Former Labour cabinet minister Dame Tessa Jowell has died aged 70, her family has said.

Dame Tessa, who was diagnosed with brain cancer in May last year, suffered a haemorrhage on Friday, and had been in a coma until her death on Saturday.

She played a major role in securing the 2012 Olympics for London when she served as culture secretary.

In recent months she campaigned for more cancer treatments to be made available through the NHS.

She earned a minute-long standing ovation in the House of Lords in January for speaking about the issue.

Obituary: Dame Tessa Jowell
'No London 2012 without Tessa Jowell'
"In the end, what gives a life meaning is not only how it is lived, but how it draws to a close," she said during her speech.

"I hope that this debate will give hope to other cancer patients, like me, so we can live well together with cancer, not just dying of it. All of us, for longer."

Leading the tributes to Dame Tessa, former prime minister Tony Blair told the BBC that she was a "committed public servant" who was "always true and loyal and decent and wise".

source:www.bbc.com