The Tunku Laksamana Johor Tunku Abdul Jalil Sultan Ibrahim, the fourth child of the Sultan of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar and his consort Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris Shah's six children was diagnosed with stage four liver cancer recently.
Tunku Abdul Jalil is currently undergoing treatment, although he underwent a successful liver transplant on December 10 last year at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun-Yat-Sen University, in Guangdong, China.
Despite suffering from excruciating pains for the last six months, the cancerous cells were only spotted when he did a magnetic resonance imaging scan while holidaying with his family in London.
Since then, Sultan Ibrahim has donated RM10 million towards the establishment of a cancer foundation in his name to provide help for others in the same situation.
He also organised two major events, including the Royal Malaysian Police Charity Concert (Konsert Amal PDRM) on June 15 last year, and the recent Johor-series of the Monsoon Cup.
However, Tunku Abdul Jalil was unable to attend the charity concert which was to raise funds for the family of deceased policemen as he was not well at the time.
Additionally, vocational training programmes to for the widows were also held in order to equip them with the skills necessary to generate an income.
The proceeds from the charity were also used to help children of policemen with disabilities.
Tunku Abdul Jalil, however, managed to attend both the launch and closing ceremonies of the Monsoon Cup held at Danga Bay in Johor Baru.
He is the youngest recipient of the prestigious International Sailing Federation (ISAF) President Development Award, which recognises outstanding achievement in the development of sailing.
He attended the low-key award ceremony held at Istana Bukit Serene in crutches.
Tunku Abdul Jalil said despite all the pain he was going through, he was glad that he was able to attend the akad nikah and wedding ceremony of his eldest brother the Tunku Mahkota Johor Tunku Ismail to Che Puan Khaleeda Bustamam in October last year.
"I am blessed in so many ways especially to be able to attend Tunku Ismail's wedding," he said, with tears in his eyes.
A known animal lover, Tunku Abdul Jalil, who also trained with the police's Special Action Unit, shared his experience as a volunteer zoo keeper in Singapore and London.
In 2008, as a zoo keeper at the London zoo, Tunku Abdul Jalil missed the first and second day of Hari Raya.
As a volunteer zoo keeper, he was unable to get time off.
On the first day of Hari Raya, after washing toilets and cleaning animal pens, he was asked to clip the nails of wild boars.
I had to administer sedatives to a wild boar before clipping its nails.
On the second day of Hari Raya, he was told to empty the zoo animals' waste which was in a huge tub.
"The zoo in London was rather old fashioned. The waste was channelled into a tub, which has to be emptied and cleaned daily. While I was carrying the tub out, the suction pump malfunctioned and I ended up with poo all over me," he said.
Tunku Abdul Jalil said his love for animals could have been inherited from his grandfather the late Sultan Iskandar Sultan Ismail.
"Ever since I was a young boy, I used to follow Almahrum to his animal enclosure in Istana Bukit Serene. He too loved animals.
"Today, I have two pet alligators, and a marmoset, the world smallest monkey. I've named it Nomad. I don't get to play with Nomad much nowadays, as its fur may cause an infection.
Tunku Abdul Jalil who is active on social networking sites such as Instagram and Facebook, said he manages the sites personally as it was his way to set aside protocol and reach out to the people who were with him during his illness.
"Bah (Tunku Sultan) is very concerned about my well-being and has always ensured that I eat properly according to the diet the doctor has advised and he also reminds me to get sufficient rest," he said in an exclusive interview held at his home in Horizon Hills.
In relation to the coronation ceremony today, Tunku Abdul Jalil said he was nervous but hoped that he would be fit enough to witness the ceremony.