Johnny Ruffo’s girlfriend shares emotional tribute on anniversary of his cancer diagnosis

Johnny Ruffo’s long-time girlfriend Tahnee Sims has taken a moment to honour Ruffo for unwavering strength in his remarkable 6-year-long battle with  brain cancer.

On Monday, August 7, Sims took to Instagram to share a sweet tribute video to her boyfriend of 8 years, showcasing the realities of Ruffo’s cancer journey.

“Six years on from diagnosis. What a fighter!!” Sims captioned the video.

 

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A post shared by Tahnee Sims (@tahneesims)

Ruffo’s good friend and former Home and Away co-star Lynne McGranger was among the first to leave a heartfelt message in the comment section, saying “Love you both. Always in my prayers. Pretty sure @sydneyswans will end up ahead of @essendonfc – so YOUR TURN FOR DINNER!! AGAIN.”

His fans swiftly joined in with their own supportive words.

“And you are both always smiling..truly inspirational your fight and your love.”

“Six years of you fighting a creating awareness but most of all living life to the fullest!!!!”

“You’re amazing!  you have the strength of all that watch your journey x.”

“What a champ @johnny_ruffo. Keep fighting the big fight. You’re truly an inspiration mate xx.”

 

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A post shared by Johnny Ruffo (@johnny_ruffo)

Ruffo was first diagnosed with brain cancer back in 2017 when what he believed to be a migraine turned out to be a very serious brain tumour.

Speaking with Who Magazine’s podcast Who Are You back in 2018, Ruffo recalled the terrifying ordeal, revealing that his girlfriend saved his life by rushing him to the hospital after he complained of a painful migraine.

Doctors initially told Sims to go home, believing Ruffo was simply experiencing a migraine.

But she woke to devastating news the next morning, as doctors revealed he had slipped into a coma due to a fist-sized tumour in his brain, which may have been growing for up to 10 years.

“The doctor said, ‘If you didn’t come in [to the hospital], you would have gone to sleep and you would have been dead’,” Ruffo said at the time.

“Basically [the tumour was] the size of my fist in my frontal lobe, so all that pressure was being put on my brain, which explains the severe headaches and blackouts.”

After successfully removing the tumour in 2017, fans were hit with devasting news three years later in 2020 when Ruffo penned a heartbreaking post announcing his brain cancer had returned.

Since then, Ruffo has regularly updated fans via social media, giving them insights on his second bout with brain cancer.

The actor has since appeared in good spirits as he continued to undergo treatments, thanking his fans for their endless support.