Heartbroken Katherine Jenkins pays touching tribute to best friend Polly Noble as she loses her battle with cancer

Heartbroken Katherine Jenkins paid tribute to her best friend Polly Noble as she passed away following a seven year battle with cervical cancer.

The singer posted a picture of herself and her friend on Twitter on Monday with the caption: ‘Heartbroken. Rest in Peace my darling friend’.

The pair became friends when they met as struggling singers in 2001 and Katherine previously told You Magazine that she always felt Polly was the ‘true star’ out them both.

Rest in peace: Heartbroken Katherine Jenkins paid tribute to her best friend Polly Noble(L) after she passed away following a seven year battle with cervical cancer

Polly was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2005 and had to share the heartbreaking diagnosis with Katherine over the phone while Jenkins was on tour.

Speaking to You Magazine, Jenkins said: ‘She didn’t look or sound ill – it was just unbelievable.

And of course the word cancer frightens the life out of me because I had watched my father die of lung cancer when I was 15.

She added: ‘But he had been nearly 70, and Polly was just 24. She was too young; she had too much to live for.’

Katherine was there to support her friend as she went through surgery before having chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Initally, the treatment worked and Polly was able to move back to London where she lived cancer free for three years.

Best friends: The singer posted a picture of herself and her friend on Twitter on Monday with the caption, 'Heartbroken. Rest in Peace my darling friend'

However, in 2010, she found a lump in her neck that turned out to be a secondary tumour.

Katherine recalled the moment she found out as she said: ‘This time her oncologist told her that although she could have more treatment, the cancer was ultimately incurable.

‘She called me from the hospital with the news. Neither of us cried. We were too stunned.’

Katherine was inspired by her best friend’s strength as she said: ‘Polly has turned her own experiences into an incredibly positive force.

The book she has co-written on coping with cancer is just what I wish I had been able to turn to when my father became ill.

She has also trained as a holistic health coach, become a nutrition guru and developed her own website on healthy living.’

Katherine shared another picture of the pair on Instagram with the caption: 'Heartbroken - Sleep now with the angels'.

For you dad: Katherine Jenkins ran the 2013 Virgin London Marathon in honour of her father, who also passed away following his battle with cancer