THE family of a father of two have paid tribute to a "brave" and "selfless" man who died after a three-year battle with leukaemia.
Lee White, 30, died at his mum's home on Sunday April 10 surrounded by his family after contracting pneumonia.
The Furness Rugby player had first been told that he was suffering with leukaemia in 2013 and received two bone marrow transplants to help fight the disease.
However, when the cancer came back for a third time, Lee was told that it was incurable.
Gill Ray, Mr White's mother, said: "He always put on a brave face, you would never have known that he was struggling.
"Never once did he complain about his condition - he was so brave throughout the whole process.
"He still tried to make people laugh even when he was suffering.
"He was grateful that it was him because it was less likely that the rest of the family would be diagnosed with cancer - that's the kind of person that he was."
Mr White lived with his partner of two years, Kim Murray, aged 31.
She remembered him as her "best friend" and was grateful for the time that they managed to spend together.
"We did so much together - we were always going away on weekend breaks and making sure that we made the most of the time we had together," Ms Murray said.
"He was so brave and so selfless - he was always thinking of other people."
"I loved him so much, no words can describe how special he was to me and our lives will never be the same without him."
Mr White received a lot of support from St Mary's Hospice in Ulverston.
The 30-year-old "hated hospitals," according to his mum, so when he became unwell, the Hospice at home team made sure that he could see out his final few days in more comfortable surroundings.
He died at his mum's home surrounded by all of his family, including his girlfriend Kim as well as his sister Abigail, his brother Mark and Mark's partner Stacey.
"The staff at the hospice really helped - they were amazing as they brought an oxygen tank and everything else Lee needed to my home on Saturday. They really were wonderful," said Mrs Ray.
The family are now calling on people to donate to the hospice to thank them for their hard work.
They also want people to consider donating their stem cells to Anthony Nolan, an organisation dedicated to saving the lives of those with blood cancers such as leukemia.
"It's so easy to be a donor - people think that they drill into your hip but the procedure is just like giving blood."
"Lee always thought he was lucky because he had a pick of donors to choose from.
"He had three years with us that he would not have had if someone hadn't donated."
Furness Rugby posted a tribute to the former first-team player on their website.
Darren Holt, who played with and coached Mr White for a number of years, said: "He was always up for a laugh and was well-liked by everyone at the club. I don't think any one could say a bad word about him.
"I know he has a loving family and it's tragic that he is leaving them behind. He will be seriously missed by people in the Furness community."
For more information on becoming a blood stem cell donor, you can visit the Anthony Nolan or Delete Blood Cancer websites.
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