Former South Sydney winger Nathan Merritt has given a positive update on his battle with cancer.
The 43-year-old is currently suffering from oesophageal and liver cancer and is undergoing a seventh round of chemotherapy.
But in a recent update, Merritt announced he has put on 18kg despite being given a terminal diagnosis.
Back in March, he revealed exclusively to the Daily Mail that he was battling the killer disease on two fronts.
He would then reveal the grim prognosis a month later, saying he had only been given 12 months to live.
A Souths fan favourite, Merritt was the foundation club’s most prolific try-scorer for eight seasons, until his record was overtaken by fellow Indigenous winger Alex Johnston in 2022.
The former Bunny is currently having intravenous infusions twice a month, and said he is ‘enjoying every moment I get on this earth.’
‘I’m good and I’m happy. I’m feeling stronger and better. I’m putting on some weight. I was 80 kgs but am back up to 98 kgs,’ Merritt said.
‘All the kilos have gone to my gut. I’ve got to start training again. I haven’t lost my appetite. My doctors told me to eat as much as possible.’
Despite putting some significant weight back on, the outlook unfortunately hasn’t changed for Merritt.
‘They still haven’t given me a chance to beat the cancer,’ he said. ‘My (life) expectancy is 12 to 24 months. I am just enjoying my life at the moment and am living like I don’t have cancer. I know my life could end any day so I am enjoying every moment that I’ve got on this earth.
‘I think I can fight and beat this. I will fight as long as possible – this won’t bring me down. I won’t let this get the better or me. I try not to think about it too much. I’m staying as positive as possible.’
Speaking at the time of his diagnosis, Merritt said, ”I’ve been diagnosed with stage four cancer – oesophagus and liver cancer.
‘It’s a bit of tough news to swallow, but I’ve just got to keep fighting ’til the end.
‘It’s a tough pill to swallow for my kids and family. But it’s good – it’s going to be a tough one, but I’m going to fight through it.’
He also explained how he found out that he was plagued with the horror disease.
‘You know, I had problems with my stomach,’ he said.
‘Just my stomach was blowing up on me a lot, and I initially got diagnosed in November for oesophageal cancer.’
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