Christopher Reeve's Widow, Dana, Dies Aged 44

Dana Reeve, who spent nine years caring for her husband, Christopher Reeve, after he was paralyzed in a riding accident, died on Monday in New York of lung cancer.

Reeve, 44, announced last summer that she had cancer, but just four months ago said that she was responding well to treatment. She was a non-smoker.

Reeve set aside her own acting and singing career following her husband’s 1995 accident. After his death she chaired the foundation he had established to research cures for spinal-cord paralysis. Her role as a carer for the Superman actor accorded her a special place in US culture. Last year she won a mother of the year award from the American Cancer Society, which lauded her "strength and courage in the face of tremendous adversity".

She is survived by the couple’s 13-year-old son, Will, as well as two stepchildren, Matthew and Alexandra.

Reeve, like her husband, became a strong advocate of stem cell research. Following her husband’s death, just weeks before the 2004 presidential election, she campaigned for Democratic candidate John Kerry. Yesterday Mr Kerry said: "It is impossible to put into words the quiet strength and incredible courage Dana Reeve demonstrated in the way she lived her life. With Chris, she gave voice to a movement to find life-saving cures and promote medical research, and when she lost her inspiration and love she didn’t stop the fight."

She met her husband in 1987 when she was performing in cabaret in Massachusetts. She had appeared on Broadway and in regional theatre as well as on television shows such as Law and Order.

Under her leadership, the Christopher Reeve Foundation dispensed more than $6m (£3.4m) in grants. Kathy Lewis, president of the foundation, told Associated Press that when she last visited Reeve a few days ago she was "tired, but with her typical sense of humor and smile".