Social media star Tanner Martin, 30, announces his own death in heartbreaking video
An influencer announced his death in a prerecorded video – just weeks after his wife gave birth to their daughter.
Tanner Martin, a dad, died following a five-year battle with stage four colon cancer.
The 30-year-old died just seven weeks after his wife, Shay, gave birth to their first child.
Tanner, from Utah, went viral after documenting his cancer battle on social media, reports The Sun.
A video was shared to the couple's Instagram account on Wednesday that was captioned: 'May the force be with you from our angel force ghost.'
'Hey, it's me, Tanner, if you're watching this, I am dead,' the video started.
Tanner revealed that he had a 'heck of a life' and revealed he came up with the idea of publishing a video announcing his death around a year ago.
'Life was awesome. I really enjoyed it while I was here,' he reminisced.
'Hopefully, I believe there's something after this.
'I'm excited to meet those people, and hopefully we're hanging out now and making fun of all you nerds.'
In the clip, Tanner compared death to an 'adventure' but admitted that it can be scary.
Tanner was first diagnosed with colon cancer in 2020.
He was told the illness couldn't be cured in 2023 and doctors said he had between two and five years to live.
Between November 2020 and October 2024, Tanner had more than 50 rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, and six major surgeries, as per People.
Tanner told the outlet he had accepted that he would die.
'I think it's important to talk about death, especially for other people in my situation,' he said.
'This is something you want to prep for.
'You don't want your spouse to have to plan your funeral and maybe not even have enough money to do so.'
Tanner died less than a week after he went into hospice care.
In a clip, Shay revealed the decision was taken so he could manage his pain and discomfort better.
In a TikTok video shared in November last year, Shay announced that she was expecting a baby.
The start of the clip showed her husband stroking and showing affection to his dog.
'Cancer has taken so much from us but … watch to the end for the biggest surprise yet,' the first caption said.
Shay acknowledged that Tanner wanted to be a father before his death.
She opened up on how she turned to IVF, but revealed sepsis and her husband's cancer battle had proved to be hurdles in their journey.
Then, she shared pictures from a photo shoot of the couple holding newspapers.
The splash said: 'Breaking News. Baby on the Way!' and the couple were showered in confetti.
The shoot rounded off with Shay clutching a teddy bear in one hand while holding onto a stroller.
And, a pacifier was put into Tanner's mouth and he was given some photos from Shay's scan to hold.
On May 15, Shay announced that he was able to see the birth of his daughter, Amy Lou.
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