Pharmac's decision to fund more cancer drugs has surprised one Kiwi woman as well as lifted a "massive weight" off her shoulders.
Karyn Robson started taking AlectinB when she was diagnosed with lung cancer, but at just under $6500 a month, it hasn't been cheap to fund.
"My parents were with me. They said, 'We want you around. We want you around for your daughter. We'll get whatever money together that we can as a family collectively and see how long we can make it stretch'," she recalled to TVNZ1's Seven Sharp.
The drug hasn't been a cure, but is has been the next best thing.
"My oncologist called me and said, 'You've had a complete response in three months,' and I just hung up the phone and I burst into tears. I honestly felt like I'd won the lotto," Ms Robson said.
"I need these to keep me alive."
The decision by Pharmac has surprised her.
"I was a bit shocked at first," she said. "I didn't know whether to believe it."
But for this lung cancer patient, who has never smoked, it's life changing.
"For me, I have felt like a burden to my family, my friends, to everyone who has supported me financially," she explained.
"It's been a tough one for me emotionally because in a way, I haven't wanted to feel a burden to people but I know people want me to stay," she said.
"This is a massive weight off my shoulders because I don't have to rely on anyone else financially anymore to keep me alive."
Ms Robson is happy for her parents to be able to "enjoy their senior years" after scraping together to pay for the drugs, which have kept her going so far.
Her advice to fellow cancer sufferers is that they should not give up the fight.
"Keep speaking up, keep making New Zealand aware and getting at Pharmac to get on to it," she said.
"It's so worth it in the end, and your life is worth it."
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