Matthew Wilkins, a promising student and beloved son, died suddenly from bacterial meningitis at age 18.

He was attending Marcellin College at the time of his death and Australia has already been hit with 25 cases  of meningococcal meningitis so far this year.  Matthew experienced common illness symptoms like a severe headache, abdominal pain and vomiting.  The scariest part of Matthew’s case is that even though he was admitted to a hospital, he only survived for a few more hours.  Meningococcal meningitis can kill or maim so quickly that there is often no effective medical treatment to save people stricken with the disease.  Once contracted there is often nothing that can be done to stop the progression of the disease.

Read the full story here