By Demi Koutouzi Kelly Williams
A student claims a TikTok trend saved his life – when the daily videos revealed he had a huge lump growing on his neck . Felipe Escobedo had seen how social media users looked “less bloated” after having Coconut Cult yoghurt daily so he tried the craze himself. But when the 19-year-old rewatched daily videos of him eating it late last month he was shocked to notice the left side of his neck appeared “curvy.” The scared college student said he felt a “big ball” when he touched the side of his neck so went to the hospital the same day. He was reportedly told the lumps could be signs of a cold or flu but Felipe returned to the ER when the lump became more inflamed a fortnight later. Medics at Albany General Hospital, Oregon, US, discovered four more lumps and performed surgery on June 9 to remove them. Felipe says only one was able to be removed and two days later he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma – which is a rare cancer of the body’s vessels and glands. Scan results last week revealed his cancer is at stage three as it’s present in his stomach and lungs. It’s believed the disease is treatable so as he prepares for chemotherapy he’s credited the TikTok for ‘”saving his life.” He’s now encouraging others to get checked if they notice any lumps. Felipe, from Atlanta, Georgia, said: “I filmed the videos every day for two weeks because I saw people sharing how their faces looked less bloated by eating Coconut Cult. “I first started noticing symptoms when I was looking through them and saw one side of my neck was curvy. “I didn’t even feel its presence at all but for some reason that angle in that video made me take action. “I touched it for myself and just felt this big ball. “I was really scared and immediately went to the ER but they thought it was [the virus] mononucleus or some sort of cold or flu. “I didn’t realise the left side under my jaw felt harder than the right side. It was very small, but it felt like a small, hard rock. “I didn’t take any action until it was [more] inflamed at the end of May. “I saw an oncologist and had a biopsy, then they performed the surgery and diagnosed me with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma two days later. “I felt a lot of emotions but I had just finished packing up my dorm so I could only cry for three minutes before I had to go to the airport and back to Georgia. “I had a feeling this was possible but then I also couldn’t believe this was actually what I have and that I have to move forward with this. “They’re all just swollen on the left side of my neck, the big one is right below my ear and then four smaller ones that go down to my collarbone. “I’m so grateful that those videos really made me see that this one lymph node was something more serious. I even looked at the photos from the past and started noticing. “I feel very neutral [now I have my results]. Filming those videos saved my life because I spotted it and now I can get treatment.” Felipe said he had also noticed a persistent cough since February 2025 but put it down to living in a college dorm. Coconut Cult is a brand of probiotic yoghurt which means it contains live microorganisms, usually bacteria or yeast, that have their potential gut health benefits. He’s urging others to get their symptoms checked if they notice things like a persistent cough or lymph nodes. Felipe said: “Being in a college dorm it’s very easy to get sick so I thought when I went back to Georgia it was going to go away. “If you’re coughing really hard for weeks, definitely look after that, and if you feel something hard on your neck, get that checked. “It’s paired with cold and flu symptoms but definitely keep a lookout.”