AN ARDROSSAN woman has been told she has only weeks to live - just days after the Three Towns community rallied round to make her wedding dream come true.

The Herald reported back in October how locals were urging all those who could do so to rally around Dougie Graham and his partner Ashleigh Jones.

Ashleigh was diagnosed with stage three bowel cancer and had to have her bowel removed and a stoma bag fitted.

And while the operation was a success and the cancer was removed, she found out at a routine scan a few months later that the cancer had returned and spread.

Only two days after her dream wedding, which took place in Ardrossan last week, Ashley was told she had only weeks, rather than months, to live.

A JustGiving page has now been set up to help Ashley's family as she is looked after by the Ayrshire Hospice.

The page is available online at https://tinyurl.com/AshleighFundraiser.

Friend Sandi McCormick said on the crowdfunding page: "Thanks to all the help from the Ayrshire community they had their dream wedding on December 6.

"Two days after they were married Ashleigh was given the devastating news that her timeline is now weeks rather than months, due to her stoma not working for so long.

"Ashleigh is a beautiful person with a beautiful soul who has always seen the bright side of things.

"Even now, as she suffers this horrible disease, she will still have a smile for anybody she meets."

Teenage sweethearts Ashleigh and Dougie had originally planned to tie the knot on Valentine's Day next year - but her health situation forced a change of plan, and they were married at the Whitlees Centre in Ardrossan on Wednesday, December 6.

After a "mad rush", according to friend Marion McBreen, who helped arrange the special event, a fantastic and memorable day was delivered.

Marion said: "The day before the wedding, we were told we had a four-hour window, so I had a mad rush to get the hairdressers, make up artist, bridesmaids, mother of the bride and flower girl to hospital to get ready.

"The nurses were amazing and bent over backwards for her her. They gave us the staffroom and decorated it for us. They also put Ash in a side room and let us come and go.

"I arranged for the Bentley to  pick Ash up at the hospital, and the nurses gave her a guard of honour and  put their fascinators on - it was so touching. They also piped her out.

"Not a dry eye, I can assure you.

"She got almost four hours, and she had a ball."

But on Friday, Ashleigh was told she had weeks, rather than months, to live.

She has now moved into the care of Ayrshire Hospice, where she'll be surrounded by family and loved ones - including, of course, her new husband - as well as round-the-clock care from the charity's staff.

Friends of the pair have now, in their words, "rather reluctantly" set up a JustGiving page in bid to help "ease the burden" as Ashleigh receives end of life care.

Ashleigh, who is originally from Girvan, and Dougie have been together for 28 years, having met on a caravan holiday.

Ashleigh was told to expect to live for around one or two more years, depending on the outcome of her treatment - and so decided, in her own words, to "chase Dougie down the aisle".

A host of volunteers pitched in to ensure the day was as memorable as it could possibly be, before the couple were given the heartbreaking news on Friday.