A beloved family man who documented his five-and-a-half-year battle with cancer in heartbreaking and stark blog posts has died.

Dean Robinson, from Seaham, died on Monday (March 13) at St Benedict’s Hospice, in Sunderland.

In February, Dean and his family had been told that chemotherapy was no longer an option. In his blog, read by friends, family, and the local community, he said he was sure that it was “the right time.”

But family and friends have been left devastated by the loss of an “amazing” father, husband, teacher, blogger and biker.

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In a tribute to her late husband on his blog, Rebecca Robinson wrote: “I'm not going to try and finish his blog there is no way I can do it justice. He fought really hard right to the end to stay in this world, in true Dean style with his humour and strength of character.”

The Northern Echo: Dean was a keen biker - and thanked friends who came along on his last rides with him.Dean was a keen biker - and thanked friends who came along on his last rides with him. (Image: The Robinson Family)

“Cancer is a proper bastard”, Dean wrote in his final blog, published at the start of the week – the deterioration in his health had been sudden, making it clear “time was no longer on [his] side.”

“Death and dying - same thing at different stages I suppose.

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“How does one deal with it? Plan for it? The before and after bits? Regrets? All the things one might wish they'd done or said. It could be a nightmare to get your head into and around, if you dig down through it and try. 

“I've done all that and come out the other side smiling. Perhaps not smiling like a loon, but beyond content and happy.

“As I said in an earlier blog, I've done stuff and in some small ways, here and there, I made a positive difference to a few people. I've loved and been loved - thank you, Rebecca.

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“Now for the wonderful bit. I have no regrets, and nothing left unsaid. What's more is that my beautiful wife knows this, and she feels the same. In fact, it was her who broached the subject and said it.

“It is quite the most amazing feeling knowing that you can die with the comfort of knowing nothing was left unsaid, and that the person you care about most in the world knows this too.”

Dean has left behind wife Rebecca, daughter Lily, and sons Jake and Liam. In a tribute, the family said “R.I.P. Dean – Forever loved, forever golden.”