Emma Denise Hannigan (25 September 1972 – 3 March 2018) was an Irish author and blogger, best known for writing about her experience of suffering from cancer.
The daughter of Denise, a Montessori teacher who ran a home school, and Philip, manager of a local engineering firm, Hannigan was raised in Bray, County Wicklow.
[2] With a family history of breast and ovarian cancer, Hannigan's mother and maternal aunt tested positive for the responsible gene, BRCA1.
She eventually confessed to Kelly about writing and, after overcoming her anxiety to share her work, emailed her story with the proviso: "If it’s awful, say nothing.
[8][9] After a sales campaign by friends and colleagues, her last book, Letters to My Daughters reached the top of the Nielsen BookScan bestseller list in Ireland at the end of February 2018.
Irish President, Michael D. Higgins, paid tribute saying she "leaves a lasting legacy" and was "a powerful advocate for Breast Cancer Ireland".