A jilted bride-to-be tried to throw herself from a seven-storey building in China after her boyfriend called off their wedding.

The 22-year-old college student, named only as Miss Li, put on her wedding gown before stepping through the window of the residential building in Changchun, eastern China.

But before she plunged to almost certain death, care worker Guo Zhongfan caught her by the neck and held her as others rushed to help pull her to safety, MSNBC reported.

The Reuters newsagency released astonishing images of the dramatic scenes as the woman dangled 25 metres above the ground, with watching neighbours leaning out of their windows.