The 37-year-old mother of two died at Otago Community Hospice on Wednesday.
Her sister, Michelle Abernethy, said Mrs Adie-Kinraid's condition became more serious in recent days.
"She went downhill really quickly . . . (husband) Shaun got the call on Tuesday afternoon saying she wasn't doing so well, and she died on Wednesday afternoon.''
Her husband Shaun Adie-Kinraid told the New Zealand Herald she died only days before they were planning to renew their wedding vows on Sunday.
Taking her death was hard but it was a "blessing she's not suffering any longer".
Hundreds of sympathy messages have come in following Mrs Adie-Kinraid's death, showing her bowel cancer awareness campaign got its message across, her family says.
Her plight was highlighted in the Otago Daily Times a year ago, when her sister Michelle Abernethy signed up to walk the Dunedin Marathon as a fundraiser for Bowel Cancer New Zealand.
Afterwards Mrs Adie-Kinraid continued in her efforts to raise awareness of the disease, and in recent months she lent her support to Winton man Blair Vining's petition which calls for better cancer care for all New Zealanders.
Mr Vining posted on his Facebook page that Mrs Adie-Kinraid was a loved wife, mother and friend.
"We are sorry for your loss Kinraid family.''
"She was very brave in going public with her story, in the hope that lessons could be learned from what happened to her.
"Our thoughts are with her family at this incredibly sad time.''
Yesterday Mrs Abernethy said her sister's message had definitely got out.
"I know that Toni touched a lot of people locally and nationwide; on her tribute page I have had so many lovely messages from people, and in private messages, from people the family have never met,'' she said.
"Her girls have lost their mum, Shaun has lost a wife, I have lost a sister, but we all have lost a special human being.''
Mrs Adie-Kinraid's condition became more serious in recent days, Mrs Abernethy said.
"She went downhill really quickly . . . (husband) Shaun got the call on Tuesday afternoon saying she wasn't doing so well, and she died on Wednesday afternoon.''
Mrs Adie-Kinraid was active in her cancer awareness campaign until very recently, her sister said.
"She really was completely selfless, she was worried about everyone else.''
An ACC report, which granted Mrs Adie-Kinraid treatment injury coverage, said it was likely she could have been saved if her doctor had carried out an internal examination sooner.
A year ago Mrs Adie-Kinraid said with hindsight she knew she had bowel cancer symptoms for some time.
"For four years I got you might have irritable bowel, you might have haemorrhoids, you might be intolerant to certain foods ... but I then saw a different doctor and was told in about 10 minutes it was cancer.
"Making people aware that it could be you, that's my biggest thing now.''
