When Chan Chung-pong was diagnosed with cancer, his first thought was: 'I'm only 16 years old. How could this happen to me?'
Chung-pong was diagnosed with lymph cancer - usually found in elderly people and extremely rare among teenagers.
After undergoing 15 months of treatment, which included several sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant, his condition has finally stabilised. Now he is back in school and busily preparing for another challenge in his life - the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE) .
The pain Chung-pong experienced is beyond anything most people could imagine.
'My throat was so sore that I could not swallow. I couldn't eat and had to be fed milk pumped through a tube into my stomach. I lost more than 50 pounds [25kg]. I love to play basketball and soccer but I couldn't play anymore. The cancer made my body very weak and now I have to catch my breath just walking up a flight of stairs.'
Looking back, Chung-pong says he lost precious time at school but he formed a better relationship with his family and has a better sense of his ambitions.
'I'm 19 and should be at university but I'm only taking the HKCEE this year. I've really fallen behind. On the other hand the experience brought me closer to my family, especially my elder sister. We'd been at odds since we were little. I was the youngest boy ... and she felt that I stole all my parents' love and attention. '
