Japanese TV personality Mao Kobayashi dies after public bout with cancer

TV personality Mao Kobayashi, right, and Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizo announce their engagement in January 2010.

Mao Kobayashi, a popular TV personality, died on June 22 after a long battle with breast cancer that she detailed on her blog. She was 34.

Kobayashi, wife of leading Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizo, 39, and mother of two children, was selected as one of 100 influential and inspirational women across the globe in November 2016 by the British broadcaster BBC. The BBC said Kobayashi inspired countless readers, including fellow cancer patients, through her blog, which she started in September 2016.

“The day when I’ve cried the most in my life,” Ebizo posted to his blog early on June 23.

(THE ASAHI SHIMBUN)