ED SHEERAN gave a young cancer patient a much-needed night off from thinking about her illness during his last Brisbane show.

Caitlin Ambrose, 21, was invited to meet the British superstar backstage before his second sold-out concert at Suncorp Stadium last night.

The fan, who already had tickets to the concert, said a family friend had reached out to Sheeran’s team to put in the request, and was surprised when she got a reply agreeing to a meet and greet.

“I didn’t actually believe it was happening until I met him,” Ms Ambrose said.

She said the backstage experience was “a real blur” but she soon realised there was no need to be nervous.

“He is just a sweet and genuine guy — as soon as I saw him, he gave me a hug,” she said.

“He’s just really chilled but very happy.

“It doesn’t appear that he really likes fame, but he is really good with all the charity work.”

Ms Ambrose, who is based in Cabarita Beach in northern New South Wales, was studying nursing and midwifery at Deakin University in Geelong when she was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma last year.

She has since undergone a barrage of treatments and has spent lot of time in hospital.

Ms Ambrose said the chance to meet the star lifted her spirits after recently being told she was running out of treatment options if her cancer did not respond to her current regimen in the way doctors hoped.

“It was nice to feel a bit more normal, and it just completely took my mind off cancer and the stress of the next few weeks,” she said.