Inside the Nolan sisters' tragic health battles as Linda laid to rest in emotional funeral

The Nolan sisters have dealt woth heartache over the years (Image: GETTY)

The Nolan sisters have experienced the harrowing impact of cancer throughout their lives, with the loss of both Bernie and Linda Nolan, alongside fellow sister Anne's own battle with cancer.

Express Online takes an inside look into the devastating disease that struck three sisters - while three others escaped it.

Their father, Tommy Nolan Sr, was the first to fall victim to the devastating disease, losing his battle with cancer in 1998. Sisters Bernie, Anne, 71, Linda and Coleen, 59, all received diagnoses, with Bernie sadly passing away in 2013 at just 52 years old.

Linda Nolan

Linda, who is the third youngest of the six sisters, was first diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in 2005 before getting the all-clear in 2006.

Linda Nolan sadly died at the age of 65 after being hospitalised (Image: Getty)

However, in 2017 she heartbreakingly disclosed her fight against a secondary form that had spread to her hip and by 2020, progressed to her liver.

Compounding this tragedy, three years later, cancer also spread to her brain.

Linda tragically died at 65 after a bout of double pnuemonia but had been living with secondary breast cancer. Her death was announced on January 15.

Anne Nolan

Anne was the first of the sisters to be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000. At the time she underwent chemotherapy, radiotherapy and "an operation".

Anne Nolan was given the all-clear following a recent cancer diagnosis (Image: ITV)

Her cancer returned two decades later. It was two separate cancers and she underwent more chemotherapy, radiotherapy and another operation.

"After six months of chemo, I was fine, then 20 years later almost to the day, it came back again in a different breast," she told Lorraine last year.

She added: "I'm happy to say that, I'm clear. I've got another year before I'm actually discharged.

"But I'm clear of cancer at the moment thank goodness. I count myself really, really lucky."

Bernie Nolan died in her sleep at her Surrey home (Image: Getty)

Bernie Nolan

Tragically, middle sister Bernie lost her life to cancer at the age of 52. Initially diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2010, she was celebrating remission by October that year after undergoing extensive treatments.

However, her triumph was short-lived; she ceased taking cancer medication in February 2012, and the cancer returned later that year. Despite fighting valiantly, Bernie succumbed to the disease at her Surrey home in July 2013.

Her funeral service was held at the Grand Theatre in her home town of Blackpool, where the Nolan Sisters performed in their early years.

Bernie was later cremated. Her final wish was to be reunited with her stillborn daughter, Kate, and she was laid to rest beside her.

Coleen revealed she had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma (Image: ITV)

Coleen Nolan

Coleen, 58, discovered in July 2023 that she had basal cell carcinoma on her shoulder and a pre-cancerous melanoma on her face.

The youngest Nolan sister was warned that if left untreated, it would grow into the deadliest type of skin cancer, melanoma — which can spread to other parts of the body.

"I got skin cancer last year," Coleen said. "I had carcinoma on my shoulder which has now gone and had chemo cream on my shoulder so that burned that off."

The Loose Women presenter admitted she frequently checks for signs of cancer because so many in the family have had it.

"We have had so much heartache..." she said. "I'm always checking. I still have this thing when I think, what if I have missed it?"

Former British singers Anne Nolan and her sister Linda (Image: Sunday Mirror)

The Nolan sisters have been tested for the BRCA 1 or 2 gene to determine whether they have a genetic predisposition to cancer, but the results were negative.

According to the NHS, BRCA1 and BRCA2 are examples of genes that raise your cancer risk if they become altered. Having a variant BRCA gene increases a woman's chance of developing breast cancer as well as ovarian cancer.

Linda, speaking to the Mirror in 2020, provided insight into the family's genetic struggles with the illness.

"Anne had breast cancer first in 2000, then me in 2006, then Bernie in 2010. Then we tested for the BRCA gene mutation and we don't have it, but they did say we'll have a rogue gene somewhere it's just one they haven't found out about yet. They took our blood so they could use it for testing."

"It's weird because the doctor said it's not just bad luck that three sisters have got breast cancer. There's something not right there, so for the other girls it's very scary. They're doubly aware of checking themselves because they could have this gene that we don't know about."

However, the Nolan sisters later discovered they do not carry the gene.