Tristan thought his cough was a stubborn viral infection. It was stage 4 ALK+ lung cancer.

For months, Tristan was told his persistent cough was a viral infection. Antibiotics helped briefly, but the cough always came back. Then his lungs began filling with fluid.

At 41, working full-time in Manila and supporting his retired parents, Tristan finally learned what was wrong: stage 4 ALK+ lung cancer.

Biomarker testing offered hope: there was a targeted therapy he could take. But Tristan couldn't afford it and didn't qualify for government financial support. He and his sister began fundraising just to buy his first supply. Within seven days of starting treatment, the cough stopped.

Three years on, his oncologist has told him there is no evidence of disease. But staying on the treatment keeping his cancer under control means continuing to find the money to pay for it himself.