Losing my father to lung cancer when I was 11 years old changed my world forever. At that age, I had only experienced one death in my family before his, and naively, I was under the impression that when people got sick, they got help, and they got better. As cancer whittled away at his body and reduced him to a fraction of the man I knew, I still thought he would get better soon enough until the day I was brought into my parents’ room to say goodbye.

Just 4 years later my beautiful mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and I was convinced my brothers and I were going to lose her too. Thankfully, she managed to battle and beat cancer while remaining the matriarch and only parent to three boys.

The cancer world has evolved since I lost my dad in 1996. Even though later in life I also lost my aunt to cancer, it is not the death sentence it once was. My cousin and uncle both battled and beat cancer, so my old feeling of hopelessness has been replaced with tremendous hope for the future as new treatments are brought from the research lab to the patient bedside.

This is why I remain an advocate for VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. Massey is just one of 57 comprehensive cancer centers in the US, the highest designation the National Cancer Institute will award a cancer center. They continue to lead the charge in cancer research and heavily focus on building trust and breaking down barriers between medical institutions and underserved communities.

Massey Nation is a force to be reckoned with, and I am proud to be a part of it!