Veteran Cancer Talk

Send us Fan Mail Army veteran Thomas Firak thought he was healthy. Then a routine blood test revealed something that couldn't be ignored. In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk, Thomas shares his journey from serving in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom to being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a rare blood cancer linked to burn pit exposure and other toxic exposures veterans may face durin...

Send us Fan Mail Cancer treatment may end, but for many survivors, the challenges continue long after they hear the words "cancer free." In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk, Ashton and Casey sit down with men's pelvic health physical therapist Matt Johnston to discuss an often-overlooked part of cancer survivorship. From urinary leakage and pelvic floor dysfunction to sexual heal...

Send us Fan Mail Army veteran Matt Roll spent more than a year searching for answers after persistent pain was repeatedly dismissed as an ulcer. Trusting his instincts ultimately led to a diagnosis of multiple myeloma at just 41 years old. In this episode, Matt joins Veteran Cancer Talk to discuss his military service, concerns about toxic exposures, the road to diagnosis, undergoing a stem cell t...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk, Ashton speaks with Heather King — military brat, breast cancer survivor, doctoral candidate, and founder of Rooted Resilience — about the overlooked issue of toxic exposure and long-term health risks facing military families. Heather shares her experience growing up in military housing and later being diagnosed with breast cancer at 33 despi...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when you’re still serving your country… and get diagnosed with stage 4 cancer? In this episode, we sit down with Ron and Kate Belany — a Navy family navigating life after a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis. From early symptoms that were easy to dismiss… to a misdiagnosis… to starting treatment just weeks later — this conversation dives into what that journey really look...

Send us Fan Mail This wasn’t planned. We just kept the mic rolling. After wrapping our conversation with Kevin Sloan, Casey jumped in and what followed turned into one of the most real conversations we’ve had yet. No script. No structure. Just two veterans who’ve both faced testicular cancer talking about what life actually looks like after. In this Side Mission episode, we get into:  Life after l...

Send us Fan Mail Most men don’t talk about it. That’s exactly why this conversation matters. In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk , we sit down with Kevin Sloan , a Kevin Sloan a Marine Corps veteran and two-time testicular cancer survivor who shares what it’s really like to face cancer not once… but twice. From deploying to Kuwait and Iraq to navigating life after service, Kevin opens up about...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk, we sit down with Dave Diaz, a Navy, Army, and Army National Guard veteran who was diagnosed with prostate cancer at just 45 years old—with no symptoms. Dave shares how a routine blood test changed everything, leading to surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and years of hormone therapy. But beyond the physical battle, this episode dives into som...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk , Ashton speaks with Liz Blackmon — Army veteran, breast cancer survivor, retired Department of Justice law enforcement officer, veteran advocate, and realtor. Liz shares her journey from military service to a breast cancer diagnosis that was caught early because she advocated for her own health and pushed for a mammogram . Diagnosed at stage...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk , Ashton sits down with Army veteran and leukemia survivor Shawn Morgan . After multiple deployments to Iraq and years of potential toxic exposure, Shawn began experiencing unusual fatigue, shortness of breath, and other warning signs. In June 2024, he was diagnosed with leukemia and quickly began an intense treatment journey that included ch...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk, Ashton speaks with Dr. Elizabeth O’Donnell, Director of the Multicancer Early Detection Clinic at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, about one of the most promising developments in oncology: multicancer early detection (MSED) testing. MSED tests use a single blood draw to analyze DNA methylation signatures that may indicate the presence of ca...

Send us Fan Mail When a veteran is diagnosed with cancer, the whole family is changed — but few people see what happens to the caregiver. In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk , Jennifer Worthy shares her experience supporting her husband, a Gulf War Marine, through a stage 3 cancer diagnosis, remission, and now a stage 4 recurrence. From chemotherapy routines to navigating the VA healthcare syst...

Send us Fan Mail Joseph Zolper , Army veteran and Manager of Outreach & Networking at the Road Home Program at Rush University Medical Center , joins Ashton on Veteran Cancer Talk to discuss veterans’ mental health, toxic exposure awareness, and why support matters even more when veterans and families are navigating serious medical issues like cancer. Joseph shares his Afghanistan deployment e...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Veteran Cancer Talk , host Ashton speaks with Gary Schell , a U.S. Marine Corps infantry veteran and testicular cancer survivor, about his journey from military service to cancer diagnosis—and life after treatment. Gary shares his experiences serving with 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, including deployments to the Pacific and the Middle East, and discusses potentia...

Send us Fan Mail Charise Isis, founder and director of The Grace Project, joins Veteran Cancer Talk to share how photography has become a powerful tool for healing, visibility, and empowerment for breast cancer survivors — including veterans. Through visual storytelling, The Grace Project is putting real faces to breast cancer and changing the way survivorship is seen, felt, and understood. The pr...

Send us Fan Mail Navy veteran, breast cancer survivor, photographer, and author Brenda M. Lee joins Veteran Cancer Talk to share her powerful story of military service, toxic exposure, breast cancer diagnosis at age 30, and long-term survivorship. Brenda served aboard Navy ships where she was regularly exposed to jet fuel, asbestos, and hazardous environments — conditions many veterans now believe...

Send us Fan Mail Veterans are being diagnosed with cancer younger and too often, too late. In Episode 1 , we introduce the Veteran Cancer Network and the reason it exists. Marine Corps veterans Casey and Ashton share their personal experiences navigating cancer as a veteran and caregiver, and the systemic gaps they encountered along the way. This episode explores how age-based screening guidelines...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 2 , Casey — Marine Corps veteran and co-founder of Veteran Cancer Network — shares his personal journey with testicular cancer , from the first warning signs to chemotherapy and recovery. Casey reflects on his military service, exposure to toxic environments, and the challenges veterans face when navigating VA healthcare and cancer diagnosis. He recounts how a seemingly...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 3 , Casey — Marine Corps veteran and cancer survivor — breaks down one of the biggest gaps in veteran healthcare: age-based cancer screening . Most cancer screening guidelines are built for the “average” patient. But veterans are not average. Military service comes with unique environmental and occupational exposures that increase cancer risk — risks that often aren’t c...