Skip to main contentSkip to footer

Kamala Harris pays tribute to her late mother with a heartfelt message and childhood photos

The VP became emotional

kamala harris emotional cancer
Hannah Hargrave
US Deputy Editor
Share this:

Kamala Harris took to her personal Instagram feed on Friday with a post remembering someone very special. 

The Vice President of America shared photos from her childhood alongside her late mother, Shyamala Harris, who she lost to colon cancer in 2009.

MORE: VP Kamala Harris surprises childhood friend with unexpected phone call

Kamala paid tribute on World Cancer Day and her message had fans sending prayers. 

WATCH: President Joe Biden surprises Kamala Harris on her birthday 

She wrote: "I miss my mother every day, and I carry her memory with me wherever I go.

"When President Biden launched his Cancer Moonshot five years ago, I, of course, thought of my mother. We may not have ended cancer as we know it, but there is still so much work to do and we are so much closer.

GALLERY: Joe Biden's private home in Wilmington exudes White House luxury – see inside

MORE: Kamala Harris pays tribute to her sister with incredible photo 

"The Cancer Moonshot will work to reduce the death rate from cancer by at least 50% over the next 25 years and improve the experience of people and families living with and surviving cancer."

View post on Instagram
 

Kamala shared the sweet throwbacks with her beloved mom

Fans commented with praying hands emojis and wrote: "She would be so proud of u today."

Ironically, Kamala's mother was a cancer researcher before her untimely death at the age of 70.

She previously shared details of her heartbreaking diagnosis in another poignant social media post. 

MORE: Kamala Harris' purple outfit made a poignant statement at Biden inauguration - here's why

SEE: Kamala Harris and Michelle Obama make waves with heartwarming photo together

Kamala said: "My mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, came to this country with a dream: to cure cancer. She became a breast cancer scientist and worked for decades in the lab to advance the fight against the deadly disease.

kamala harris joe biden© Photo: Getty Images

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris launched Cancer Moonshot 

"It was a shock when she told us in 2008 that she herself was diagnosed with colon cancer - and a great sadness when she passed away a year later. 

Kamala's father Donald J. Harris is a retired economics professor from Stanford University. The couple had split when Kamala was seven, with Shyamala winning custody of their daughters.

Read more HELLO! US stories here 

Like this story? Sign up to our newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.

More Celebrity News

See more