Girls Aloud Singer Sarah Harding Dies of Breast Cancer at 39

Sarah Harding, an original member of the phenomenally successful English girl group Girls Aloud, died Sunday of breast cancer. She was 39.

Her mother Marie announced Sarah's death on Instagram, writing, "It’s with deep heartbreak that today I’m sharing the news that my beautiful daughter Sarah has sadly passed away."

A year ago, Harding announced a diagnosis of breast cancer that had metastasized to other parts of her body. Marie referenced that battle, going on to write, "Many of you will know of Sarah’s battle with cancer and that she fought so strongly from her diagnosis until her last day. She slipped away peacefully this morning. I’d like to thank everyone for their kind support over the past year. It meant the world to Sarah and it gave her great strength and comfort to know she was loved. I know she won’t want to be remembered for her fight against this terrible disease — she was a bright shining star and I hope that’s how she can be remembered instead."

Girls Aloud bandmate Nadine Coyle wrote on Instagram, "I am absolutely devastated!! I can’t think of words that could possibly express how I feel about this girl & what she means to me!! I know so many of you will be feeling this way. For now I’m sending so much love to you!!! ❤️❤️"

Harding's ex-fiancé, DJ Tom Crane, posted a photo of the former couple goofing around, showing Sarah laughing uproariously.

Harding's battle with cancer had been a public one, including the March release of her book "Hear Me Out," in which she remembered her life and career and detailed her resolve to beat the disease.

Born November 17, 1981, Harding became famous overnight in 2002 on the ITV reality show "Popstars: The Rivals," which led to her place in Girls Aloud. The group had 20 consecutive Top 10 hits in the U.K., among those four that hit #1, and recorded five studio albums. The band went on a hiatus for several years, during which Harding tried her hand at acting, starring in the film "Bad Day" (2008). She went on to appear in "Freefall" (2009), a TV movie; a "St. Trinian's" sequel (2009); "Run for Your Wife" (2012); and acted on the series "The Keith Lemon Sketch Show" (2015) and "Coronation Street" (2015).