MANILA (3rd UPDATE) - Actress Liezl Martinez passed away on Saturday morning after a long battle with cancer.
"Si Liezl, yung pamangkin ko, namatay kaninang umaga, 6:15 a.m., stage 4 cancer," said her uncle, Cheng Muhlach.
Muhlach said the 47-year-old actress was brought to the hospital last Monday. "All the family is here," he said.
Family friend Shirley Kwan, who is also the manager of Albert Martinez, Liezl's husband, said in a statement that the actress "peacefully passed away in her sleep."
"Liezl is surrounded by her beloved husband, Albert; precious children, Alyanna, Alfonso, and Alyssa; loving mother, Amalia; father Bobby; and her relatives at this time of love and grief," said Kwan.
A wake service will be held for the family and friends of the actress starting on Sunday, March 15, at the The Heritage Park Chapels and Crematory in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig.
The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) also mourns the passing of Martinez.
Martinez formerly co-chaired the MTRCB committee responsible for the nationwide Matalinong Panonood campaign. She also engineered the modernization and upgrade of the board's review facilities.
"Liezl shall be greatly missed. We nonetheless join the Philippine entertainment industry and the Filipino audience in celebrating her life. We extend our condolences and prayers to her family and loved ones," the MTRCB said.
Martinez was first diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in 2007.