'I listened to my husband's heart until it stopped beating three days after our wedding'

A widow whose husband succumbed to cancer a mere three days after their wedding has shared her belief that he "held on" to tie the knot with her before "going up to the angels". Dean Dunphy, 33, was diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer, specifically glioblastoma, in August 2023 after suffering stroke-like symptoms and muscle twitching – with medics labelling the condition as "an old man's disease".

His wife, Michaela Dunphy, 31, an admin worker living in Dublin, revealed that Dean underwent two brain surgeries to excise cancerous tissue, alongside chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but the tumour persisted in growing. Faced with an uncertain prognosis, the pair chose to wed on May 18 this year at Michaela's mum's residence after securing a Court Exemption Order, which allowed them to bypass the standard three-month notification to the registrar.

Tragically, on their wedding night, Dean suffered a seizure and was swiftly taken to hospital, where doctors advised Michaela it would be best to commence end-of-life palliative care, adding: "If Dean makes the next couple of days, it'll be a miracle."

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After loved ones bid their final farewells, Michaela said she rested on Dean's chest and listened until his heart stopped beating at 4.35am on May 21. Michaela said coping with bereavement and becoming a single mum to their daughter Sloane, four, has been extraordinarily difficult but she is now determined to raise awareness and establish a foundation in Dean's name to fund more research into brain cancer treatments.

Recalling the moments before Dean passed away, Michaela said: "I just said (to Sloane): 'Look, Daddy is going to go up to the angels very soon'.

"She said, 'does this mean I don't have a daddy anymore?' And I said, 'no, you do have a daddy, he's just not going to live with us anymore'.

"She had a cry, we had a cry, and she's been looking after me ever since. She's been so strong. Even now, people say to me, 'Michaela, he held on to make you his wife'."

Dean had endured migraines and headaches since childhood, but medics said this was typical. Nevertheless, in June 2023 he began experiencing sudden muscle spasms whilst driving on a motorway.

"Thank God he managed to pull over, because he said he was basically experiencing the symptoms of a stroke," Michaela said. Medics initially suspected Dean might have Bell's palsy, which causes paralysis or weakness on one side of the face, but blood tests, scans and examinations ruled this out.

Weeks later Michaela got a phone call from the hospital saying "they had found something on his brain".

"We got called back in on July 24 and they said: 'We can see what looks like to be a brain tumour'," she explained. "They said they needed to operate to investigate further."

Dean went through open brain surgery on August 24 – Michaela's 30th birthday – and the seven-hour operation was successful, with surgeons managing to remove the tissue for additional testing.

But a week later doctors rang to say "it's not good news" and disclosed Dean had stage 4 brain cancer, specifically glioblastoma.

"They basically said, 'It's a type of brain cancer', and as soon as we heard the word cancer, it was like white noise – I was in shock," Michaela said.

A fortnight later, Dean had a second operation to extract the remaining active cancerous tissue around his brain and began chemotherapy and radiotherapy, followed by a "blocker treatment" to stop the tumour from growing larger.

During this period, whilst Dean's speech began to slur and he lost his mobility, the pair got engaged and decided to wed as quickly as possible.

"I wanted to marry him from the minute I met him," Michaela said. "I was like, 'Just get me that ring!'" The pair had initially planned to wed at Opium in Dublin, but with Dean suffering "scary" seizures, they chose to marry at Michaela's mother's house instead.

Two days before the ceremony, they received an unexpected phone call from doctors saying they wanted to perform additional surgery – an operation previously thought impossible.

"It felt like a blessing in disguise, and I said to the doctors: 'We're getting married on Sunday, so this is the best wedding gift ever'."

Following the signing of legal paperwork at the local civic centre, Dean and Michaela celebrated their "amazing" wedding ceremony on May 18 surrounded by loved ones in the back garden of Michaela's mum's home.

A nearby café supplied the food, whilst their favourite tunes played, including Ordinary by Alex Warren.

"We're so thankful that we got to do it, and we got to do it our way," Michaela said. "It was amazing; it couldn't have gone any better."

On their wedding night, Dean began experiencing more seizures and was rushed to hospital, where Michaela was informed the additional surgery was no longer viable and her new husband might have just days remaining.

Daughter Sloane was amongst the relatives and friends who came to bid farewell in hospital as arrangements were made for Dean to return home, where he wanted to pass away.

Michaela asked their priest to visit the hospital, and Dean received a blessing and the Last Rites before dying in the early hours of May 21. "I was lying on Dean... and I was waiting to hear his heart stop," she said.

"I just needed to be the one to hear his heart stop, that was my closure."

Dean's funeral took place on May 24. As part of her mission to boost awareness and raise funds for additional research into brain cancer treatments, Michaela has started documenting their journey on TikTok, using the handle @michaela. dunphy.

She explained she had vowed to Dean before his passing that she would support others, and she "won't stop" until she too is "on (her) deathbed".

"I promised him, I said, 'I'm not going to stop, I'm going to continue on, it's going to help me'," Michaela said. "I want to have a foundation in Dean's name... and for Sloane to look back and say: 'That's my dad'."