A Filipino domestic worker who was reportedly driven out by her employer last year while still undergoing cancer treatment has died in her hometown.

Joan, a 41-year-old single mother, succumbed to cervical cancer on August 25 in Guimba, Nueva Ecija, according to friends based in Hong Kong.

The former OFW was reportedly roused from her sleep and driven out just after midnight on May 1, 2017 by her employer of two years and two months.

Joan was diagnosed with cancer on Mar. 5, 2017. She was admitted for treatment at the hospital, and was discharged on Mar. 31, with instructions to continue her daily radiotherapy sessions.

The employer packed her belongings in a suitcase and two striped bags and tried to send her off in a taxi to her church’s shelter, saying she had used up all her leave credits.

A fellow Filipina domestic worker took pictures of her looking forlorn on the street, and posted them on Facebook, drawing concern from many people in the community. The concerned Filipina also took her home initially, and brought her to the hospital to continue her treatment.

At the time, Joan was undergoing radiotherapy treatment for Stage 3 to 4 cervical cancer at Tseung Kwan O Hospital. She had her 20th treatment on May 11, 2017. Officers from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration paid her a visit and also helped with her repatriation back to the Philippines.

Videos shared on social media showed her white coffin being carried from her house to a nearby chapel for a religious service on August 27 before her burial in the village cemetery.

The ex-OFW had been advised by Help for Domestic Workers to file a case under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance against her employer as the manner of her dismissal in the wee hours of the morning was done while she was sick and fragile.

The appeal reportedly was never filed at all.

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