EastEnders' Denise Fox to face major setback in emotional cancer story

EastEnders’ Denise Fox and Jack Branning are shaken to the core next week, when they hear that Denise will have to undergo a stem cell transplant to increase her chances of beating cancer.

Still undergoing treatment for leukaemia, Denise has been putting up a brave fight against the cruel disease that she was diagnosed with back in June. But when the mum-of-three hears that her chemotherapy isn’t working as hoped, and that she will need a stem cell transplant, it knocks her for six…

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"Thank goodness Jack is by her side when she hears the news," says our Walford insider. "But, of course, that doesn’t make it any less heartbreaking.

"The pair of them are devastated to hear that the treatment isn’t working, not to mention that the next step is a stem cell transplant. The Fox-Truemans already know that none of them are a match for Denise, so what can be done?"

The week begins with bride-to-be Kim visiting Denise in hospital to celebrate her hen do, taking place later that day. However, it’s immediately clear to Kim that Denise isn’t healthy enough to get into the party spirit.

As a result, Kim returns to the Square, where Kat convinces her to join Cindy’s party – as she and Max are now scheduled to be wed on the same day as Kim and Howie next month.

"It’s hard to watch Denise in such a fragile state around Kim," shares our source. "You just know that, in any other circumstances, Denise would be hyping Kim up all the way through the hen do."

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With Denise now needing a stem cell transplant, will she find a match in time?

We now know that there are some big moments ahead for the Fox-Trueman family, when in the coming weeks Kim discovers that Denise has a half-brother called Darnell who she didn’t know existed.

The family reach out to Darnell and when they meet up, they are also introduced to his daughter Grace. However, it’s not a very happy family reunion, as Darnell soon learns the truth about Denise’s cancer diagnosis and aggressive treatment.

As a new branch of the Fox-Trueman clan is uncovered, what will this mean for Denise?

For free and confidential support and information on blood cancer and life after a diagnosis, contact Blood Cancer UK online, by phone on 0808 2080 888 or via email at support@bloodcancer.org.uk.

EastEnders airs on Mondays - Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer, where most episodes drop early at 6am ahead of their TV broadcast.