A retired Hamilton man says he was unable to sleep after winning the $1 million Lotto jackpot over the weekend – two weeks after being diagnosed with cancer.
"I had no symptoms of cancer at all, the doctors were extremely shocked when the results came through, and it was a hell of a shock to me," he said.
The man and his wife, who've been married for nearly 40 years, said they received the worrying news a week before Christmas and had been "down in the dumps" about the prospect of more tests and treatments.
The couple, who buy their weekly ticket online, had taken the same numbers for more than 35 years. The pair had never had a big win and recently joked about giving up their weekly punt.
On Saturday, the pair were watching the Lotto draw on TV and thought they "probably got four numbers".
"We didn’t think anything more of it until we could check it and then there were tears and laughter. My hands were shaking and neither of us could sleep," he said.
Realising they were both wide awake around midnight, the couple decided to celebrate their life-changing win with a late supper.
"Since I got the cancer diagnosis, I’ve adopted a 'no sugar, no dairy, no meat diet' so I couldn’t even have a beer," he joked.
"To be honest, the win hasn’t really sunk in yet because the cancer diagnosis is overriding everything."
Despite the uncertainty, the couple said they had plenty of reasons to stay positive.
"Our family is welcoming new grandchildren later this year. We just love being grandparents, everything is just so exciting for them."
The couple said they planned to tackle the man's cancer battle together while taking their sudden Lotto windfall "one day at a time".
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