A 27-year-old North Carolina man fulfilled his final wish by marrying his college sweetheart in a hospital room at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, just 10 days before he died from a rare form of bone cancer.
The emotional ceremony was officiated by Boston Commissioner of City Records and City Registrar, Paul Chong, who conducted the wedding at the groom’s bedside, surrounded by immediate family and close friends. A video of the touching moment later went viral on TikTok after it was shared by the bride, moving millions with the couple’s story of love, resilience, and devotion.
Robbie Fox and his fiancée, Ke Peters, first met during their freshman year at Elon University, though they officially began dating in their junior year. After graduation, the couple built a life together, moving between Connecticut and North Carolina.
Their lives changed dramatically in 2024 after Fox was involved in a biking accident that injured his hip. During follow-up scans, doctors discovered he had Ewing Sarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer that develops in the bones or surrounding soft tissue.
Determined to pursue the best possible treatment, Fox, Peters, and their families relocated to Massachusetts so he could receive care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Fox endured an intense treatment regimen that included 14 rounds of chemotherapy, 40 sessions of radiation, and dozens of blood transfusions. By February 2025, the treatments appeared successful, and he was declared cancer-free.
However, the relief was short-lived. In November, routine monitoring revealed that the cancer had returned. Despite aggressive pain management and medication over the following six months, Fox’s condition worsened, leading his family and Peters to transition his care to inpatient hospice services within the Boston hospital network.
Reflecting on the difficult period, Peters recalled Fox saying, “Oh, I’m fine not leaving the state of Massachusetts.”
By April, the couple had been engaged for about a year. Peters, who remained constantly by Fox’s side, said, “Oh, I think we should get married, and he was so excited and so happy about it. Reflecting back, I think it’s more meaningful that he was my husband than not.”
