Rosanna Cossetini died on the weekend after a long battle with breast cancer, aged just 40, the Daily Mail reports.
Rosanna originally met Stuart, 45, two years after the Thredbo landslide, which claimed the lives of 17 people including his first wife, Sally.
The pair then wed in 2002, and Rosanna was first diagnosed with breast cancer just three weeks after they tied the knot and then went into remission.
“I really did think it was unfair,” Stuart told Woman’s Day of the diagnosis.
“I went through all these emotions,” he says. “I thought is Rosanna going to die? It made me doubt a lot of things. Why me – again? It was a big blow, but it made our relationship unbelievably strong.”
Stuart of course rose to fame for his inspirational tale of courage, surviving 65 hours buried alive in the rubble of the deadly 1997 landslide at a ski resort in Thredbo that claimed the lives of 17 others.
Stuart Diver in Thredbo
Miraculously though, not only did Stuart survive and go on to marry Rosanna, but the pair also welcomed baby daughter Alessia together in 2010, in spite of devastating medical advice that Rosanna would probably never conceive.
“I was told by many specialists that I couldn’t have children,” Rosanna told Woman’s Day at the time. But just like she fought through the cancer, Rosanna also fought to conceive.
Sadly though, by June 2013, the cancer had returned and Stuart told The Australian at the time, “Obviously, secondary breast cancers are not nice, there’s never a good outcome at the end.”
“But we’re doing everything we can, throwing everything at it, with Alessia being 3½, we’re trying to stay as positive as we can.”
The McGrath foundation was amongst high profile Aussies to tweet their condolences.
Miraculously though, not only did Stuart survive and go on to marry Rosanna, but the pair also welcomed baby daughter Alessia together in 2010, in spite of devastating medical advice that Rosanna would probably never conceive.
“I was told by many specialists that I couldn’t have children,” Rosanna told Woman’s Day at the time. But just like she fought through the cancer, Rosanna also fought to conceive.
Sadly though, by June 2013, the cancer had returned and Stuart told The Australian at the time, “Obviously, secondary breast cancers are not nice, there’s never a good outcome at the end.”
“But we’re doing everything we can, throwing everything at it, with Alessia being 3½, we’re trying to stay as positive as we can.”
The McGrath foundation was amongst high profile Aussies to tweet their condolences.
