AS A Stage 4 Hodgkins Lymphoma survivor, Leongatha-born and raised Jayson Filomeno remains committed to fundraising for Lymphoma Australia, and you can help the cause while enjoying a night of bingo at Leongatha RSL on Saturday, September 14.
The event leads into World Lymphoma Awareness Day on September 15 and will help fund Lymphoma treatment and research.
Lymphoma is a form of cancer that begins in the lymphatic system.
There are two types of the disease, Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, the first being more common and often affecting young people, most famously Delta Goodrem.
As well as bingo, Jayson has ensured an array of raffle prizes and auction items are up for grabs, donated by friends, family, and businesses both local and from further afield.
Prizes include pamper packs, alcohol, cookbooks and photo shoots, while a Stony Creek Racing Club membership, a cricket bat signed by Marnus Labuschagne, and a Hamilton Island accommodation voucher are among the items you can bid on, with both a silent auction and a live one being held.
Raffle tickets can be purchased from Jayson on 0447 786 296 or by emailing jays.lymphomafund@gmail.com and will also be for sale outside Leongatha Nextra Newsagents on August 17 and 24.
Property manager Jayson previously held a successful fundraising morning tea, bringing in more than $6500, and spoke in the lead-up to that event of the importance of assisting Lymphoma Australia.
“Without money, they can’t afford equipment, nurses and research to tackle
lymphoma,” he said.
His lymphoma experience began as a 16-year-old Leongatha Secondary College student, with constant stomach and back pain.
In 2015, aged 19 and at university in Melbourne, Jayson began suffering more severe and wide-ranging symptoms, including knee pain, with numerous visits to Melbourne doctors failing to deliver a diagnosis.
“Go home and take some Panadol and you will be right,” he said of the attitude he struck, the reality being that no painkillers eased the symptoms and Jayson struggled to sleep.
Stomach and lower back pain continued to flare, along with that in his knee, his difficulty eating and drinking resulting in dehydration and severe weight loss.
He also began developing lumps in places such as his armpits, groin and neck.
With his condition forcing him to quit his studies and return to Leongatha, Dr Fred Edwards of the town’s Long Street Medical Clinic diagnosed Jayson with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
Testing revealed he had reached Stage 4 and required immediate treatment, the cancer having spread throughout his lymphatic system and present in his legs, back, abdomen and neck.
Jayson attended Gippsland Cancer Care Centre, requiring months of vigorous chemotherapy to reduce the size of the cancerous lymph nodes.
He was declared in remission after eight months and remains cancer-free.
Jayson continues raising awareness of lymphoma and encourages people to get checked out, and to seek further opinions if necessary.
