TEENAGE CANCER PATIENT Stephen Sutton, who has raised over £3 million for charity, has been discharged from hospital after undergoing what he described as a ‘remarkable recovery’.
Sutton, a 19-year-old from Staffordshire in England, had set himself a goal of raising money after he was diagnosed with cancer that had spread to different parts of his body and was said by doctors to be incurable.
His story gained huge momentum on Facebook and Twitter and the aim of reaching £1 million for the Teenage Cancer Turst in the UK was quickly reached. Only on Monday he had written that ‘unfortunately I haven’t got much time left’.
But yesterday he underwent a successful operation to remove cancerous tissue from his lungs and airways. A stent had been proposed to help him breathe but doctors concluded that, because of the amount of cancerous tissue they removed, it wasn’t needed.
Writing today on his Facebook page, the teenager shared the news that he had been released from hospital and spoke of about how he felt:
The recovery I’ve undergone recently is quite remarkable . It has been difficult, there is an emotional trauma attached to nearly dying (a few times) that will take a while to get used to, but ultimately I now feel even more fortunate to just be here and the experience serves as a potent reminder to go out there and live life as freely and as positively as possible. The simple things we take for granted are all blessings, and living truly is a privilege we should all try and enjoy and make the most of.
He goes on to explain the physical toll his body has taken over the past few weeks and acknowledges that he is far from completely healthy.
He will be meeting with a specialist in a couple of weeks and may be eligible for a trial drug treatment if he is strong enough.
“It would be a fifth different chemotherapy regime for me, with previous others having limited effect, so we will need to seriously discuss the efficacy of me trying it, ” he says.
The goal of raising £1 million has been more than trebled and the total funds raised now exceed £3.1 million (€3.8 million).
In a further post this evening, Stephen thanked everybody who donated to the campaign and shared his story, adding that he’ll attempt to read the all messages of support he’s received and try to as many as he can.
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