‘My lucky day’: Man wins $200,000 lottery prize on the way to his last chemotherapy treatment

PINK HILL, N.C. - A North Carolina man battling cancer won a big lottery prize on the way to his last chemotherapy treatment, lottery officials said.

Ronnie Foster of Pink Hill said winning a $200,000 lottery prize on the way to the doctor made his last cancer treatment a lot easier.

“I was already happy because it was my last round of chemo,” said Foster, who is battling colon cancer. “Winning this made it my lucky day.”

A file image shows lottery scratch-off games in a display case. (Photo by Doug Jones/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

Foster, a retired Department of Transportation worker, bought a Win It All scratch-off ticket when he stopped at a Short Stop convenience store in Beulaville on his way to the hospital, officials said in a press release.

“I bought a $1 ticket and won $5,” Foster said. “I decided to trade it in for a $5 ticket. At the last second, I decided to buy two tickets instead of one.”

He didn’t win anything when he scratched the first ticket. But then he scratched the second ticket.

“I saw all those zeroes and I froze,” Foster said. “I didn’t believe it until I gave it to the clerk at the counter to scan. When it showed, ‘Go to lottery headquarters,’ I started shaking. I couldn’t believe it.”

Foster claimed his prize Friday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh, officials said. He took home $141,501 after state and federal tax withholdings.

Foster said he plans to use some of the money to pay his medical bills and save for the future.

“I have good insurance,” Foster said. “But there is still some cost. This will make it a whole lot easier.”

Win It All scratch-off tickets launched in December 2018 and was scheduled to end in November. According to the North Carolina Education Lottery, Foster won the last top prize.

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This story was reported from Cincinnati.