CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A 14-year-old Gary boy who competed on Fox’s “MasterChef Junior,” has lost a battle with a rare form of cancer.
Ben Watkins died at Lurie Children’s hospital where he was being treated for angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma, a rare form of cancer, that his doctors said has only affected about a half-dozen people, according to the Northwest Indiana Times.
A statement from his grandmother, Donna Edwards, said, “Ben suffered more than his share in his 14 years on this earth, but we take solace that his suffering is finally over and in that, in the end Ben knew he was loved by so many."
He lost his parents in a murder-suicide.
"Our Ben went home to be with his mother Monday afternoon after a year-and-a-half battle with cancer," his maternal grandmother Donna Edwards and uncle Anthony Edwards said in a statement. "After losing both of his parents in September 2017, we have marveled about Ben's strength, courage and love for life. He never, ever complained. Ben was and will always be the strongest person we've known."
Watkins had appeared on Season 6 of the "MasterChef Junior" culinary contest on Fox that's hosted by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay. Ramsay donated $50,000 to help pay his medical bills and recorded a video along with the cast of that season to cheer him up in the hospital.
Ramsay said on Twitter, "We lost a Master of the @MasterChefJrFOX kitchen today. Ben you were an incredibly talented home cook and even stronger young man. Your young life had so many tough turns but you always persevered."