A "vibrant and lovely" bus driver who was raising money to fund treatment for a rare form of cancer lost her battle with the condition at the weekend.

Alex Shepherd suffered from a rare and aggressive form of ovarian cancer and needed to find £114,000 a year.

The 22-year-old was a driver with Reading Buses for two years and worked for the company with her mother Anna.

In a heartbreaking post on her Go Fund Me page, she wrote: “The costs we face for this treatment [immunotherapy] are terrifying but when the only other option is giving up, I’m determined to keep myself alive. I’ve decided to keep positive. I will be one of the lucky ones.”

Doctors discovered a cyst attached to Ms Shepherd’s ovary in April this year after she noticed increasing pain in her stomach with bloating and “looking seven months pregnant”.

She wrote: “I was busy with a job I loved becoming a bus driver and settling down with my lovely boyfriend. And out of nowhere I found myself in hospital surrounded by worried looking doctors.”

She had the cyst and ovary removed in May but the cyst ruptured during the surgery and doctors noticed lymph nodes that were enlarged.

She added: “A few weeks later came the absolute worst moment of my life. Doctors told me that the cyst was cancerous. I was in a state of shock. I just couldn't believe this was happening to me.

“When I thought it couldn't get worse than that I was told I didn’t just have ovarian cancer – I had an extremely rare and aggressive strain that came with a “strikingly poor” prognosis.”

She said treatment for the “niche” cancer was not available on the NHS and she needed to find £114,000 a year to fund the treatment privately.

She managed to raise just over £5,000 before her death, with her colleagues at Reading Buses rallying around her to help her raise the funds.

Tributes have flooded in for Ms Shepherd, with Martijn Gilbert, MD of Go North East motor services, tweeting on Sunday: “Sad to learn that former Reading Buses colleague Alex Shepherd lost her battle with a rare form of cancer today aged just 22.

“Thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. Thanks to those, in true RB family spirit, who rallied to raise funds for her treatment. RIP Alex.”

And Reading Buses HR director Caroline Anscombe said: “All of us at Reading Buses are devastated by the news that our dear colleague Alex Shepherd passed away on Sunday aged 22, after her battle with an extremely aggressive form of cancer.

“Alex was a vibrant and lovely young woman who was taken too soon, leaving family, friends and colleagues mourning her loss. Our thoughts are especially with Alex’s immediate family members as they try to come to terms with this tragedy.

“Many colleagues took part in fund raising activities to try to raise enough money for Alex to get the treatment which might have prolonged her life. Alex and her family were very grateful to everyone for this and Alex knew how much her friends and colleagues cared for her during the last months and weeks.

“Alex will always have a place within Reading Buses and we are considering how we can honour her memory, a decision which will be taken in conjunction with her family.”