Jade Goody dies in her sleep after losing cancer battle

Jade Goody died in her sleep this morning, her publicist Max Clifford has confirmed.

The reality TV star, who suffered a public battle with cervical cancer, died at her home in Upshire, Essex, at 3.14am on Mother's Day.

Goody's mother Jackiey Budden said: "My beautiful daughter is at peace."

Mr Clifford said Goody's mother Jackiey and husband Jack Tweed were at her side. A family friend, Kevin Adams, was also there.

"I think she's going to be remembered as a young...

...girl who has, and who will, save an awful lot of lives," he said, referring to how her public battle with cancer has raised awareness of the disease.

"She was a very, very brave girl," he said.

"And she faced her death in the way she faced her whole life - full on, with a lot of courage."

He said it was "ironic" that the 27-year-old - who had two young sons Bobby, five, and Freddie, four - had died on Mother's Day.

Mr Clifford said he hoped Goody's family would be left in peace to grieve.

Goody's body was taken out of her home shortly before 8am.

Speaking outside the home, her mother Jackiey said: "Family and friends would like privacy at last."

Mourners started arriving at the house to pay tribute to Goody within minutes of the news breaking.

They left floral tributes at the gates of her home.

Goody's body was placed in the back of an estate car and driven away.

Ms Budden was wearing pyjamas with a coat over the top when she left the house.

Goody's friend Mr Adams, who was dressed all in black, was visbily upset and declined to comment to reporters outside the home. Later, two police officers arrived at the house.

Harpal Kumar, Cancer Research UK's chief executive, said: "We are very sad to hear of Jade's death and our thoughts are with her family and friends at this devastating time.

"Her brave battle with an aggressive form of cervical cancer has received widespread public attention and encouraged thousands of women to seek advice on how to prevent the disease.

"It's critical that young women take up their invitations to cervical screening if we are to avoid more tragic cases like Jade's. She has done a great public service by raising awareness of the importance of screening during her last few months of life.

"Jade is one of 1,000 women to die from cervical cancer each year in the UK.

"Every death from cancer is a tragedy and Cancer Research UK is absolutely determined to reduce the number of people dying from the disease.

"We've set an ambitious five-year strategy to achieve this and plan to spend £300 million a year over the next five years to gain a better understanding of cancer, improve prevention and screening, diagnose cancer earlier and develop better treatments."

Dr Lesley Walker, Cancer Research UK's director of cancer information, added: "Cervical screening is very important because it can stop cervical cancer from developing in the first place. It is one of the few preventable cancers because pre-cancerous cell changes can be picked up before they have a chance to develop into a full blown cancer.

"Women can protect themselves against cervical cancer by always attending routine screening tests when invited by their doctor. These tests detect any changes in the cells lining their cervix early on, so they can easily be treated before cancer develops.

"In the long term, the introduction of the cervical cancer vaccine has the potential to prevent cervical cancer in the UK. The vaccine is being offered to all 13 year old girls in UK schools - with a catch up programme for girls aged up to 18. Parents can help protect their daughters against cervical cancer by ensuring they receive the vaccine."