A man with terminal cancer is set to win thousands of pounds after betting he would not die before June.
Jon Matthews will collect £5,000 from bookmakers tomorrow after beating the odds of surviving.
The 59-year-old was diagnosed with a cancer linked to asbestos, called mesothelioma, in 2006.
He scooped £5,000 on June 1 2008 after placing a bet with William Hill that he would not be dead.
Jon Matthews
He made a further wager that he would live beyond June 1 this year.
Mr Matthews, from Milton Keynes, said: "I think I'm the first person in the world to bet on my own life."
The widower was told by Harefield Hospital in Middlesex their longest surviving patient with mesothelioma lasted 25 months after diagnosis.
Mr Matthews has had the cancer for 38 months.
"When I was diagnosed I was told mesothelioma was a death sentence," he said.
"I wasn't that fussed because everyone has to die some time.
But the interesting thing for me was how long it would take, would it take weeks or years," he explained.
If he survives until June 2010 he is in line for £10,000 more after placing another bet.
He plans to donate most of his winnings to cancer charities.
"Never in 30 years in the business have I been so pleased to pay a winning client £10,000, with, I trust, a further £10,000 to come next year," William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe said.
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