Victorian Liberal MPs have been quick to show their appreciation for Allen.
State Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said she was heartbroken at the news.
“Katie was one of the strongest, most intelligent people I have ever known. She had such a warm heart and was dedicated to bettering our country, and her beloved local community, until the end,” Wilson said on Facebook.
Wilson’s predecessor Brad Battin wrote on Instagram: “Life isn’t fair for many. And for Katie – this was not fair.
“But the changes she made, the people she supported and the beliefs she lived, for many gave them the opportunity they may never have had. And with her support, life was more fair. Thank you, Katie, for everything.”
Another former state opposition leader, Michael O’Brien, said: “I’ve never seen anyone with as much energy, optimism and positivity as Katie.”
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Victorian senator Jane Hume said
Allen “was an extraordinary woman, and an inspirational friend”.
Figures from across the political spectrum have also paid tribute, among them teal Kooyong MP Monique Ryan, Victoria’s Major Events Minister, Steve Dimopolous, and Labor senator Michelle Ananda-Rajah.
Ananda-Rajah took the seat of Higgins from Allen in 2022, and then became a senator after Higgins was abolished.
“Hers was a life of service and you were all her triumph. My condolences to you all,” she wrote.
Allen’s death has come just seven months after she revealed her cancer diagnosis – cholangiocarcinoma, which affects the bile ducts. Last month, she told this masthead of how her medical student daughter, Jemima, first alerted her to the symptoms.
Before her political career, Allen was a paediatrician by training, and served as the division head of population health at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. She was also on the board of Cabrini Health, chair of the Melbourne Girls Grammar School council and on the advisory board of several medical technology start-ups.
Her last public message came barely a week ago, praising daughter Jemima for earning her medical degrees.
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