grew up not far from here in Detroit
area like most kids of the twentieth
part of the gym playing basketball of
your friends going that days trying to
figure out the career job which your
life purpose is and I felt only one like
most transitions just a joint life
trying to grow up figure out what you
want to like one day when I was in Arlen
I was with three friends shouldn’t fool
having fun hanging out typical saturday
night was actually a machine that one
felt fully buffered all of a sudden out
of the blue so screw she lived I’m like
oh image thank you it was excruciating
pain that Thun like a lynx which would
it felt like is someone literally took a
knife step directly and left testicle
screw shape again I’m playing pool
hanging out I travel post it immediately
adult over in pain I’m physically
couldn’t standing up my fresh loads of
handsome Johnny you can’t be Stan role
which over shoulder old care to the car
which have a car driver the hospital
figure out what this is and a typical
kid the 20s I looked at my friends and
said guys I’m fine figure the sound
can’t be that bad and my mind that but
it would be as simple as going to light
switched to go to a doctor just move
past it and I looked at my friend said
don’t worry I’m okay and start living
like this out of our and I went all the
way down the street to my guard get to
my car open the car door
fleming’s oven in only to realize that
both of my legs are blacked out of it’s
sort of fetal position and at that point
I’m almost crying in pain but come along
and I got it into a school what can I do
I started doing the only thing I think i
can do is sort of push it on my quads
trying to get my legs to extend to reach
the battles and its goal i did my legs
down able to barely touch the pedals and
see and drive probably not that safe
this is what happened I tried the car
hours later be with a doctor I’ve got a
doctor running his hands to his here
look at the eyes saying sorry kid run or
twice I’m really able to tell you this
but you had cancer and its advanced and
what I learned quickly it started the
testicle this testicular cancer spread a
left testicle into the pelvis into the
abdomen find the kidneys almost to the
lungs I had been to a doctor about five
years because I didn’t think I could do
to this is my 20s and I felt fine and
that is a really important thing for all
of us to remember to go in get checked
every year if you find things early
generally people live things progress
sometimes people don’t but immediately
when I found out it was cancer and as a
situation I was in went right into
treatments treatment started with
surgery and cut the left testicle out
there’s no way to separate that from the
cancer then immediately I had to make
sperm I had learned quickly would that
even meant firm so we have children
later if you need them because most
likely we’re going to be sterile after
this you know and after that I had a
surgical implant called the glory that
was surgically
into my arm it’s about the size of
nickel little bit thicker and that was
an access point first email every day so
your comment every morning about seven
thirty in the morning eight o’clock
about eight hours of chemo on big
tuesday wednesday thursday friday was
every day was the first week recycling
chemo overall lasted about five to six
months typical side effects on chemo
numbness in your fingertips and your
toes I got ringing my years that was so
loud sometimes I could see people’s lips
moving all I get here in green things
like cystic acne and rashes trying to
skin obviously for two very tired from a
guy who worked out every day to not
working out for about two years not once
so as you can imagine there’s so many
little things that haven’t so quickly
flip your life around for something
questions so I got no I truly believe
the fear of the unknown is what scared
people like me and so many people who
have to give those words you have cancer
now when I was in treatment I have my
mom I had my brother I had high school
buddies that we come visit me at the
cancer center at a couple buddies that
were residents at the hospital and stop
by and see I had luck ten people around
me during treatments but here was a
problem I took my vehicle I left my room
filled with good energy I would walk
down the hallway and I would look at
other ones as I went to the bathroom you
can’t help but look at the glass or his
dying these other bands last else is in
here what are they fighting what
treatments are they on what I noticed
every time
every time I went to the bathroom how
many people were absolutely people long
isiliye depress and scared and every day
I would see them and I would walk back
from the bathroom walking Tywin filled
with positive energy people tell jokes
help me i netted chance to get down
because i had family and friends but the
hard reality is so many people to not
most people do not I started to feel
guilty and I started to feel this isn’t
right and something needs to be done for
these people who fight alone and so one
day was I’m walking to the bathroom with
my people I walk back I just walked into
a room and I introduce myself today
Johnny 26 got to stick you lurk answer
I’m on these chemo or what are you going
through person burns up and said oh when
it’s like going through brain cancer I
just started treatment this is so new to
me really reconnect the key open though
open arms to me what I realized over
time as I did these boxes and I want to
the other rooms everyone at the same
attitude with open arms come in let’s
talk about this where are you going
through with what do I do about what
foods to what not how do you read that
numbness in your fingertips how do you
tell your kids of your spouse about what
you’re going through or family and
instantaneous if you’re going to connect
because of shitty experience because we
empathize with each other every finish
treatments a group of survivors and I
got together he said we got to fill this
crack and this is there’s a way to fill
this crack what we’ve done came up with
an idea to connect people who are
isolated like mike vitac answer anyone
the world with somebody the same age
gender beat the same cancer at this
stage level 121 get these chewing the
same sometimes its physical and it’s
that person at the cancer center based
offense sometimes it’s follow sometimes
skype we have people so far over 60
countries all 50 states we recruited a
network of amazing human beings and
inspired me every day cancer survivors
family members who’ve been there
grateful to be on the other side and
want to give back share their stories of
hope knowledge courage and strength
understanding because at the core
empathy is a motivator as the awesome
TED talk speaker brene brown once said
when warning lights crisis of life’s
hardest points the two as powerful words
the world’s army to me to imagine a
world where anyone anywhere diagnosed
with any type of cancer has access free
access to another individual volunteer
wants to help them can save been there
done that beat it I’m here for you once a one imagine that