The Filipino-French entrepreneur shares that he is in remission despite being initially told he only had a few weeks to live

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-French entrepreneur and Nadine Lustre’s boyfriend Christophe Bariou revealed that he battled a rare form of cancer three years ago and is now in remission despite being told early on in his diagnosis that he only had a few weeks to live.

Christophe shared his experience in an Instagram post on Tuesday, June 6. He said that after his diagnosis and the initial grim prognosis, “I experienced the darkest sensation of fear, which is something I thought I had already known because it wasn’t the first time I was in a life threatening situation.”

“But this was different. The enemy was invisible and deep inside of my own body – a body that I never doubted before, at the age of 27.”

He said that aside from being afraid, he also felt anger and frustration.

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“Why is this happening to me? Why me? I felt so full of life and suddenly finding out I had a couple weeks left to live was so devastating…to say the least.”

He said that he was about to decide to forego treatment and live out his last days in Siargao “since I thought there was not much hope left.” A few days later though, other doctors told him that he had a chance to get better, but had to immediately fly to France to get treated at a specialized hospital.

In France, he learned that he had a type of lymphoma so rare that there were no survival statistics yet. He began his six month treatment, and after just two months of “intense chemotherapy and immunotherapy” he went into full remission.

“Not only was Iucky enough to benefit from the best treatments available from the leading cancer research center in Europe, but all of this was completely free of charge thanks to the rights the French fought for,” he said.

“It just makes me think how unfair it can be in other countries when something as bad as this hits,” he added.

He shared that the experience renewed his motivation to get back on his feet on continue everything he has started. It also made him more mindful.

“The best I can do is to lessen the suffering and cruelty around me, and promote kindness and compassion towards all forms of life – human and non-human. Our lives are way too precious to be wasted. In the same breath, other lives are too sacred to be robbed from them too,” he said.

He concluded his post by saying “I have no pretension of changing the world or saying anything revolutionary but simply hoping some readers will realize they should not wait for life to hit them hard to realize all of this.”

He then went on to thank those who supported him throughout his battle – his partner at the time, his family, and his friends.

Christophe owns a resort in Siargao. He and Nadine first met on the island in July 2021, and the actress made their relationship Instagram-official in January 2022. – Rappler.com

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