Voice UK star dies after cancer ‘mistaken for heartburn’ | UK | News

A talented vocalist who graced The Voice stage and earned praise from Paloma Faith has tragically passed away following a devastating misdiagnosis of cancer.

Dean Boroczky, who performed under the name Dean Franklin, was an accomplished artist whose talents took him around the world, from street performances in Plymouth and London to professional gigs in Europe, Plymouth Live reported.

Towards the end of last year, a father-of-one living in Plymouth went to his doctor complaining of discomfort. He was allegedly diagnosed with heartburn, prescribed treatment and discharged.

However, it was later revealed that he was suffering from Stage Four esophageal cancer. His mother, Marie Boroczky, heartbreakingly announced that the promising talent passed away on Saturday, aged just 37, just eight weeks after a delayed diagnosis.

Marie recalled: “He always had a passion for music. He got us holidays when we were kids, he performed in Music of the Night and we just hit it off.”

“One day my daughter and I were visiting her in Worthing and there was an open mic stage. We pushed her to get up and sing.

“When he sang, he got really carried away. His eyes were closed and he got lost in the moment. When he opened his eyes, there was a huge crowd, the people who organized it were saying ‘wow’.”

“From there, she was scouted to join The Voice UK in 2016. She went through all the stages and got two rounds from Ricky Wilson and Paloma Faith.

“He was a big fan of Paloma and joined her team. He made it to the last eight. We were all so proud of him. It was an incredible experience watching him and meeting all these people.

“Paloma had a bit of a soft spot for Dean. She kept in touch and even kept in touch after Dean’s diagnosis.”

Just weeks before his death, Dean, who had a 17-year-old daughter called Mya, performed at a “highly emotional” outdoor concert in London in front of hundreds of fans, giving a final passionate display of his devotion to singing.

Dean had maintained a healthy lifestyle until last year, when the pain began to bother him. Despite visiting her GP repeatedly due to her anxiety, Marie said she was repeatedly dismissed because the doctor claimed she was suffering from heartburn.

On December 9 the pain intensified so badly that he was admitted to A&E, believing he must be suffering from a more serious problem such as gallstones.

Marie continued: “They sent him for an ultrasound and he asked if he had gallstones and when the ultrasound specialist found masses in the liver he said ‘we need to go to another doctor.’

“The doctor came and told her they couldn’t confirm what it was at that stage and that she would need to have an endoscopy the next day.

“On December 10, she had an endoscopy and after that they took multiple biopsies and told her right then and there that it was a mistake on their part. They gave her pieces of paper with graphic images of her tumors and told her that her malignant esophageal cancer had metastasized to Stage Four.”

He revealed Dean received the devastating diagnosis with no support other than his sister Leanne, who accompanied him despite his mother traveling to London that day. He then endured an excruciating wait to see an oncologist at St Bart’s Hospital on 29 December.

Dean, Marie, and their relatives tried to salvage what they could from Christmas, but throughout the festivities Dean was in increasingly severe pain.

Marie added: “His sister and I accompanied him to his oncologist appointment and they confirmed that he had Stage Four cancer, which had metastasized to his liver and primary lymph nodes, and that they would begin chemotherapy.

“There was a chance to get immunotherapy and a professor was doing clinical trials, so we discussed all that. He knew there was no cure, we were told he could have it for 12 months if the chemotherapy was successful.”

“He was going to start chemotherapy on January 22, but he started showing more symptoms.

“He was in constant pain and the hospital arranged more medication for him, morphine and things like that, and while I was around him I noticed he was developing jaundice and I said I thought we should contact someone.

“It was said that jaundice progressed quite rapidly due to liver failure. The professor took him to emergency chemotherapy early. This started on January 7.

“He came in and because the disease was quite advanced, they were only able to give him 50 percent of the chemotherapy because of the potential damage to his liver.”

Tragically, despite a 12-month prognosis and urgent chemotherapy, Dean died on Saturday, February 7, just eight weeks after diagnosis.

Marie continued: “She took her diagnosis with courage, spirit and strength and had a real fight inside to beat it.

“When he was told he had 12 months left if chemotherapy was successful, he wanted to focus on that but wanted to spread the message – he had no symptoms before. He was diagnosed with constant heartburn.

“It’s a very underestimated disease, especially considering his age. He would go to the doctor and they would give him medicine for heartburn. He had pains in his stomach and they didn’t make any connection to that. It really went unnoticed.”

“As the oncologist told us, you often come to the GP with difficulty swallowing because of your age. It is not very noticeable when GPs go forward for tests because of your age.

“He wanted to raise awareness, he felt something was wrong, but he didn’t listen. The oncologist said there was no genetic link to cancer, the cancer was caused by acid reflux. It’s not very well known, we weren’t aware of it until Dean and I went down this path. It really opened our eyes.”

“There is little awareness of how prominent this can be.

“He had been going to doctors for the last few years complaining of heartburn. If it had been diagnosed earlier, the situation could have been different. It could have been followed up quickly. When the diagnosis was made, it was too late.

“As a family we will continue to raise awareness and I am in contact with Heartburn Cancer UK.

“There was also a mistake in the biopsies, because it was the Christmas period. They were delayed and the doctors kept saying they were after them. Then they said a mistake was made because it was Christmas, that’s why there was a delay. We didn’t think it would be taken closely.”

Despite undergoing emergency chemotherapy and enduring excruciating pain, Dean was determined to take the stage one last time and informed his followers that he would perform an impromptu outdoor show at London’s Piccadilly Circus.

Even though Dean just wanted to perform with passion, he was met with a huge backlash.

Marie recalled: “He left hospital on January 10th and went to Piccadilly Circus on January 11th because he was determined that he would do it even if he had to be taken down in a wheelchair.

“There were hundreds of people there, leaving a legacy that went well beyond the UK, literally around the world.

“He managed to do so much before all this that people traveled from Switzerland and Spain to attend his outdoor show and see him live; they didn’t expect so many people.

“I’d say between 2 and 300 people were watching. He managed to do five different songs. He did Heal by Tom Odell, which meant a lot to him. He sang Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, Back to black by Amy Winehouse, Goodbye My Lover by James Blunt, and Blower’s Daughter by Damien Rice for me. That was our song from the first days of performing.”

“It was extremely emotional. The crowd was crying. He was surrounded by so much love.”

Dean’s funeral will take place in Plymouth once arrangements have been completed, and a celebration of his life will be held in London at a later date.

Contributing to Dean’s GoFundMe, a portion of which will be donated to Heartburn Cancer UK. please click here.