Teenager fighting rare cancer scores one of Victoria’s best VCE results
THIS teen’s biggest battle during VCE wasn’t with the books — his main fight was against a rare cancer in his blood and spleen. But he still managed to achieve one of Victoria’s best scores with an ATAR of 97.05.
VCE
Don't miss out on the headlines from VCE . Followed categories will be added to My News.
DYLAN Company’s biggest battle during VCE wasn’t with the books — his main fight was against a rare cancer in his blood and spleen.
Spending half of his Year 11 and Year 12 in the hospital, the 19-year-old could easily have been excused from studies. “I tried not to use it as an excuse, others might think it would have been an excuse but I didn’t want to let myself down,” he said.
“Even though I was so sick I didn’t want to be a drama queen, I pushed myself to work hard because otherwise I would have been disappointed.”
HARRY WANTS TO BE THE LAST TO SUFFER
But there was no chance of that.
The St Monica’s College student completed VCE over three years — much of that time spent in a Royal Children’s Hospital bed — and achieved one of the best scores in the state with an ATAR of 97.05.
Diagnosed with Hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma in 2015, Dylan went through rounds of chemo, a bone-marrow transplant and radiation “from head to toe”.
At times, when finally released from hospital, he got a cold or a fever within the week and was suddenly back for months again.
One year, after watching the New Year’s Eve fireworks from the safety of the car, the Epping teen got a fever and returned to hospital the next day.
Assessments were sometimes taken during school holidays and this year, Dylan’s third of VCE, he was at school four days a week.
THE VICTORIAN SCHOOLS PRODUCING PERFECT PUPILS
I HAVE MY ATAR, WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS?
“I tried not to worry about getting behind — there’s not much you can do about it,” he said.
“If I’m too tired I just can’t study. I had to take it in my stride and suck it up a little.”
Dylan is now hoping to do biomedicine at Melbourne University, where he wants to train as a doctor as “it’s a pretty cool job”.
His name will be printed in the Herald Sun’s ‘Top Scorers’ liftout on Wednesday for the third year in a row after he achieved study scores over 40 in every one of his subjects.
“He’s very humble — he feels like he’s bragging,” said mum Margaret.
“I keep telling him he’s amazing.”
More VCE high scorers in Wednesday’s Herald Sun liftout
Your guide to schools around Dandenong
As more people move to Dandenong and Endeavour Hills, the need for secondary schools in the area grows. Here’s a comprehensive guide of each school you can send your child to, including the VCE scores, subjects and public transport options.
Where to send your child to school in Sunbury
Sunbury was once a sleepy country town, but is today seen as an extension of Melbourne. There are several places to send your child to high school — here’s our comprehensive guide to VCE scores and public transport options.