Terminally ill teen donates his life savings to a boy with cancer
A teenager who has been given just months to live has donated his life savings to a young boy's cancer battle.
Rhys Langford, 19, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a type of cancer that starts in the bones, in October 2020.
After 16 months of extensive chemotherapy, immunotherapy and surgeries, the Welsh teenager was declared cancer-free.
However, in November last year, he started to get sick again.
“I ended up with sepsis and a massive blood clot in the femoral vein, I spent nearly five weeks in hospital again, underwent further tests, MRI’s, CT scans, to be told on 4th January this year my cancer has come back,” he wrote.
“Now there is nothing more that can be done for me,” he said.
“I am dying.”
Rhys had come to terms with the fact that his journey was coming to an end, and was devastated to learn that six-year-old Jacob's battle with cancer had just begun.
Jacob was diagnosed with neuroblastoma just before Christmas 2017, prompting his family to raise thousands of pounds for experimental treatments.
After several months of chemotherapy and surgeries, he too was declared cancer-free in 2019.
After two years cancer-free, a new lesion appeared on Jacob's liver in January, instilling the worst fears in his family's mind that his cancer had returned.
When Rhys learned of Jacob's plight, he donated $1,900 to Jacob's treatment and set up a GoFundMe page, which has since raised more than $88,000.
“I know nothing can be done for me now but as one of my many last wishes I would like to help Jacob and help him fight this awful disease,” Rhys said, “I know what the treatments and awful drugs do to your body. It’s hell.”
“Jacob is now six and has been fighting this disease most of his life. It should not be this way.”
Jacob’s family said their “thoughts and love go out to this young man”, thanking him on behalf of Jacob and his “fight team”.
“We have had a fantastic donation of £1,000 from a wonderful person called Rhys ... he was reading about Jacob’s relapse and got really upset and wanted to do something to help him,” they said.
“His words were, ‘If they can’t save me I would like to help save this little boy Jacob’.”
Image credits: GoFundMe / Facebook