Jake Bailey passes Year 12 exams, is in cancer remission

JAKE Bailey made headlines with his inspiring school captain’s speech while battling cancer. Now he is in remission and passed his Year 12 exams.

COMPLETING Year 12 is hard enough as it is. But New Zealand student Jake Bailey has done it tougher than most.

At the end of last year Bailey was like most other students, studying for his final exams. He had a bit of a toothache which he attributed to wisdom teeth coming through. When the pain continued, he decided he should get it checked out by a doctor.

It was then that he learned that he had stage four Burkitt’s non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and needed treatment immediately if he was to survive. He was immediately admitted for treatment.

Shortly after Bailey made headlines around the world when he left his hospital bed to make his school captain’s speech last November. He was on his fourth of fifth day of chemotherapy.

The video of the speech — which concludes with emotional scenes where his fellow students perform the haka — was has since been viewed more than 1.6 million times.

“I’m just grateful the headline wasn’t inspirational head boy vomits down his front while the speech is delivered. It could have easily gone like that. It was just something I felt I had to do and I was grateful I managed to get through it,” Bailey told Newstalk ZB.

The statement from his speech “Here’s the thing: none of us get out of life alive. So be gallant, be great, be gracious and be grateful for the opportunities that you have,” won Bailey Massey University’s quote of the year title.

Now Bailey has confirmed that he is in remission, and that he passed his Year 12 exams.

“In response to the incredible and at times overwhelming interest and support in my battle with cancer, I am now fortunate to be able to announce that recent tests show that my treatment has been successful and I am officially in remission,” he wrote in a statement on his Facebook page.

“The chemotherapy has taken a huge toll on my body. It has left me with ongoing issues and it will take me time to get back to where I was previously. Sometimes I feel more like I’m 81 than 18.”

A recent photo of Bailey on his Facebook page.

“There will be a lot of follow up care over the coming years and cancer makes no guarantees but for now I can get on with my life.”

“[I’d like to thank] the public for their heartfelt messages which have been exceptionally uplifting. I was blown away by what an impact my words had on strangers but then I was blown away by what an impact strangers’ words had on me. Some of the letters I received were incredibly humbling.

“I also want to acknowledge the other people who are undergoing treatment for cancer who have not necessarily received the same amount of support that I have. I wish them and their families the best. I hope, like us, you share times of genuine depth among your hardship — moments probably missed if we didn’t have to go through this.

“The thing about facing death is that you get to rethink exactly who you are and who you want to be if you are lucky enough to get the chance. I want to make a difference more than ever before. Our lives are simply too fleeting not to.”

Jake Bailey, before his diagnosis. Source: Facebook.

Bailey told the Daily Mail that he passed his Year 12 exams with a “mixed bag” of results despite his original devastating diagnosis, but said they didn’t seem important after everything that had happened.

He now plans to have a gap year, and is considering moving to the Gold Coast for a spell. He had originally planned to study commerce and law at university in Auckland before his diagnosis and is still keen to do that at some stage, but “other opportunities” have also presented themselves following his inspirational speech.