David Bowie’s only son, Duncan Jones, has shared a moving letter penned by a doctor on social media.

Bowie passed away on January 10 this year, after an 18-month battle with liver cancer.

Jones confirmed his Dad’s death on Twitter, saying, “Very sorry and sad to say it’s true. I’ll be offline for a while. Love to all,” before disappearing from public view.

• Gallery: the life and times of David Bowie in pictures
• David Bowie’s most iconic moments
• ‘I’ll be free’: David Bowie’s parting gift to fans

However, yesterday Jones retweeted a letter written by palliative doctor Mark Taubert about the singer’s death.

The open letter thanked Bowie for his elegant exit from the world, saying he had helped influence others in palliative care to do the same.

“I am a palliative care doctor, and what you have done in the time surrounding your death has had a profound effect on me and many people I work with,” wrote Dr Taubert.

He described recently delivering the news to a patient that her advanced cancer had spread, and that she didn’t have much time left.

Dr Taubert said Bowie’s death had paved the way for the patient to look forward to a comfortable death, surrounded by friends and family.

“We both wondered who may have been around you when you took your last breath and whether anyone was holding your hand,” he said.

“I believe this was an aspect of the vision she had of her own dying moments that was of utmost importance to her, and you gave her a way of expressing this most personal longing to me, a relative stranger. Thank you.”

David Bowie died at home, and reportedly requested a fuss-free cremation without a public funeral or memorial.

His new album, Black Star, has shot to number one in the ARIA charts, giving him his 17th ARIA top 100 album – beating Michael Jackson.

A thank you letter to David Bowie from a palliative care doctor. https://t.co/ibFYRY8wc1 – thanks for sharing @DrMarkTaubert

— Marie Curie (@mariecurieuk) January 17, 2016