So the miners added his transaction instead of the other one, due to the bigger monetary reward it would get them.
The transaction was never ‘canceled’ it was simply overridden by another one because the “first” transaction wasn’t confirmed yet.
If it was already confirmed (a miner has already mined a block including his transaction), it wouldn’t have been possible to do what he did. (Unless someone does a much more sophisticated attack, which usually isn’t worth it or even possible in the first place.)
Basically: https://coinsutra.com/bitcoin-double-spending/
Thank you, that's an excellent explanation that even a noob like me can digest.