A Chinese teenager who bravely battled a rare disease, even sketching trains to symbolise his university journey for self-encouragement during chemotherapy, died shortly after receiving his admission letter.
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The student, 18-year-old Zhan from Anqing in eastern China’s Anhui province, succumbed to his illness on November 10 after developing complications following a stem cell transplant.
His father shared that during this year’s college entrance examination, or gaokao, Zhan suffered from a fever. In a rush to take the exam, they were only able to provide him with an intravenous drip at a nearby clinic.
Despite feeling unwell, he excelled in the gaokao, scoring 587 points out of a possible 750.
However, after the exam, he continued to experience recurring fevers. A blood test at a community clinic revealed abnormal results, leading to his transfer to the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University.
Further testing indicated that he had developed hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, a life-threatening immune system disorder caused by the Epstein-Barr virus.
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After undergoing treatment and showing signs of recovery, Zhan was discharged and proceeded to fill out his university application.
He chose to pursue Vehicle Engineering at the prestigious Dalian Jiaotong University.