In the summer of 2022, TikToker and kindergarten teacher Maddy Baloy started experiencing stomach issues. For the next year, she tried to make the issues go away on her own by changing her diet, but in February 2023 she started vomiting blood and quickly realized she couldn’t solve this problem on her own. It was then that she finally told a doctor about the problems she was experiencing.
Doctors discovered that Baloy had abnormalities in her large intestine, and they conducted an emergency surgery. During that surgery, they discovered multiple cancerous tumors pressing on her large intestine.
The next day, when Baloy woke up after surgery, her family broke the news to her that she had cancer. Ever since, she has openly and emotionally shared her journey with cancer on TikTok. You can see her most recent TikTok, which she posted on March 4, 2024, in the video below.
@fruitsnackmaddy 🛁 it would mean a lot if you stay with me until the end :) #cancer #stageivcancer #japan #terminalcancer ♬ To build a home – 𝙇𝙭𝙪𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙯 🫶🏻
When Baloy was first diagnosed with cancer, she was given 5 years to live. A little over a year later, Baloy passed away on May 1, 2024. Apparently, the cancer was more aggressive than doctors originally realized. She was only 26 years old.
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Baloy’s boyfriend, Louis Risher, told PEOPLE, “Madison passed away peacefully last night.” He added that she was “surrounded with love.”
Risher shared that the day Baloy died was his 27th birthday. He explained, “I turned 27 yesterday, actually. I was holding her hand all day and that’s all I needed.” He described her as “so special.”
Baloy previously talked to PEOPLE about her cancer journey and her decision to share it openly on TikTok. She said when she was first diagnosed she felt “alone and isolated.” That’s when she decided to join TikTok and share her journey. She said, “I knew that I had a lot to say.”
Besides Risher, Baloy is survived by her mother and her step-father.
