Dubai: Actress Liezl Martinez died on Saturday after a long battle with cancer. She was 47.
Martinez has been in the hospital since Monday after she reportedly suffered a seizure. She died peacefully in her sleep, Shirley Kwan, her husband Albert's manager, told ABS-CBN.
Martinez was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007.
The Martinez family received an outpouring of condolences, especially on Twitter where Martinez's husband, Albert, posted a photo of the couple last week on their trip to Barcelona in Spain in 2013.
"#Barcelona2013... advance Happy Birthday @liezlmartinez... Next #Hawaii2015!" he wrote. Martinez would have turned 48 on March 27.
On Saturday, Albert told Philippine Daily Inquirer that he and his children were distraught over her death. "She was a blessing to me and my kids. She was supportive. I thank her for everything," he said.
Martinez's mother, veteran actress Amalia Fuentes, told the same newspaper that her only child died at around 6:15am.
“No pain in my life worse than this,” Fuentes said. “Please pray for our family.”
Martinez's wake will begin on Sunday at The Heritage Chapels in Taguig, with her family requesting for privacy on Saturday.
Martinez starred in more than a dozen films and a few TV series. She made her debut in show business at the age of four with the 1971 film Portrait of an Angel, starring alongside her mother, but it was the 1972 film Poor Little Rich Girl that catapulted her to fame.
In an interview with the Philippine Star in 2013, Martinez talked about how she was enjoying life despite having cancer. She underwent mastectomy and intense chemotherapy six years earlier.
“I just enjoy life. I would do whatever I could do now. I became so daring, daring in the sense that I’ve done bungee-jumping, scuba-diving, next [is] skydiving,” she said.
In 2011, her cancer had metastasised to her left lung and she had undergone specialised treatment to battle the disease.
Martinez is survived by her husband, Albert, and their three children.
Celeb tweets
Producer and musician Jim Paredes joined celebrities who took to Twitter to voice their condolences.
"Liezl Martinez was a wonderful human being. May God watch over Albert and everyone she loved. Love and light," Paredes wrote.
"I woke up to shocking news that @Liezlmartinez wife of @AlbertMartinez_ has passed away.Their family is in our thoughts & prayers," actress Dawn Zulueta posted on Twitter.
