Beyonce fulfils 'last wish' of teenage cancer patient with emotional FaceTime call

Singer Beyonce carried out a good deed by FaceTime calling a teenage fan with cancer. The Halo songstress spoke to high school senior Ebony Banks on 22 March, fulfilling what has been described as the youngster's "last wish".

Banks, a student at Alief Hastings High School in Beyonce's hometown of Houston, Texas, is said to have been diagnosed with stage four of a rare form of cancer. With Banks currently receiving treatment at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, her schoolmates have made great efforts to keep her spirits up and are said to have orchestrated the Beyonce phone call.

In a short clip of the FaceTime conversation, Banks, nicknamed Ebob, is overwhelmed with emotion and appears to be crying, prompting Beyonce, 36, to declare: "I love you," with a wave. A Beyonce fan account, which posted the footage, tweeted that it was Banks' "last wish to see" the superstar. It is thought that Banks' school friends were able to organise the phone call after attracting Beyonce's attention with the social media hashtag #EbobMeetsBeyonce.

As well as the FaceTime call, Banks' friends staged an early graduation ceremony for the youngster earlier in March. Expressing their gratitude over Beyonce's kind gesture, Banks' high school tweeted: "Thank you to everyone who helped #ebobmeetsbeyonce@Beyonce."

Student Karina Gutierrez told KTRK-TV: "Beyonce is one of her idols. She admires her so much, so we're trying to put that on Twitter and Instagram to get Beyonce's attention," while another schoolmate, Cristal Depaz, added: "We try to make sure she has a smile on her face and to make her wishes come true." Banks' friend Shanya McKnight also said: "It was like wow, it really happened. We actually got her attention."

Beyonce is thought to usually carry out charity work quietly behind-the-scenes and in December 2016, the Formation singer was named the most charitable celebrity by DoSomething.org. Among the causes she has backed, include the Black Lives Matter movement, the Robin Hood Foundation and the Flint water crisis in Michigan for which she reportedly raised $82,000 (£65,500).

The Grammy-winning singer is currently taking a break from professional commitments while on doctor's orders to rest given the high risk nature of her pregnancy with twins.