THE heartbroken parents of a 24-year-old Kidderminster woman who died from leukaemia have criticised the way their daughter was told that she was going to die.

Vickie Harvey died of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia on Tuesday, December 10 last year after a brave 15-month battle with the disease.

Her parents Eric and Lynn Harvey, of Franche Road, have complained to Worcestershire Royal Hospital about the "heartless" doctor they "lived in fear of".

They said they asked the doctor not to tell Miss Harvey how ill she really was as she had personally requested not to "know anything bad".

Chief nursing officer Lindsey Webb said that Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHSTrust was sorry to hear of the complaint and will be meeting Mr and Mrs Harvey to look into Miss Harvey's care.

Mr Harvey said: "We begged the doctor not to say anything to Vickie. Vickie didn't want to know anything bad but the doctor found a way of telling her and she went downhill so fast. We knew that was going to happen if she knew how bad it was.

"The doctor just stood there and said to my wife and my eldest daughter, 'you do know she's going to die don't you - this is going to kill her'.

"I'm going to start a campaign to stop this happening again. What we had to go through was heartbreaking."

Mr Harvey said their "hearts would drop" when the doctor entered the room and that Miss Harvey was scared of her appointments.

In his letter of complaint to the hospital trust, Mr Harvey added he found the doctor's attitude "bullying and overbearing" and that they felt "verbally abused".

Ms Webb said: “We are very sorry to learn of Mr Harvey’s concerns as we take the wishes of patients, their families and carers very seriously.

“We have spoken with Mr Harvey and agreed to meet with him so that we can look into the care that his daughter received and answer any questions or concerns that he has.”

Miss Harvey, a mobile beautician, was diagnosed with leukaemia in September, 2012.

She had a successful stem cell transplant on Christmas Day in 2012 but after a few months in remission, Miss Harvey relapsed.

Her friends and family have been fund-raising for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research in memory of the former Wolverley High School student.

Nearly £3,500 has already been raised through donations and fund-raising by St John's Social Club, where Mr Harvey is a member, DW Sports in Kidderminster, where Miss Harvey had previously worked, and at Sainsbury's in Kidderminster.

Mr Harvey added: "We're all devastated - everybody loved her. She was just really happy and bubbly."

Five hundred people attended Miss Harvey's funeral and a celebration of her life was held at Cookley Village Hall.

Mr Harvey added: "Her friends let loads of balloons off - she was mad on Disney so there were Mickey and Minnie Mouse balloons everywhere.

"We'd like to say a heartfelt thanks to all the people who helped us and donated."

To donate visit justgiving.com/eric-harvey