MEET JOHN
John’s Story
About four years ago John Shaw moved from Oregon to Montana to marry the love of his life. Together they enjoy taking their Jeep out mudding, traveling and hiking in the mountains. But things in John’s life took a turn last year when he was performing a routine checkup on himself and discovered an abnormality in his left testicle.
“At the time I didn’t have health insurance, so I was super stressed about it. I would’ve liked to go to the doctor, but I [was] afraid of how much I would have to pay for it.” John said.
In October, he got a new job with health insurance, coincidentally this was the same time his health began to rapidly decline. One day John was experiencing extreme pain in his back when his coworkers convinced him to go to the Great Falls Hospital Emergency Room and get checked out.
“I was diagnosed with an infection at first, but [the providers] were super concerned by the symptoms I was presenting, so they referred me to a urologist and the timeline after that went by so quickly.”
John was originally scheduled to meet with Dr. Fukuda at the Great Falls Clinic on April 4, 2024; however, his orchiectomy, or removal of testicle(s), was pushed up to April 1st because of the rapid progression of his condition.
“Dr. Fukuda was great! Amazing! He took super good care of me throughout the surgery. He made sure to communicate every step of the way and said, ‘up until the point where I hand you off to oncology, I will be here with you’. I am exceptionally grateful for that!” John said.
When he was officially diagnosed with testicular cancer, he said he was scared of the unknown, worried about the next steps in the process, and nervous that treatment or tests wouldn’t go as planned. When he met with his oncologist, Dr. Jessica Kaae, she shared with him the story of the professional bicyclist, Lance Armstrong. In October of 1996, just three months after one of the biggest bicycle races in the world, Armstrong was diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer and given a 65% to 85% success rate. As his condition worsened that percentage continued to drop. However, against all odds, in February 1997 Armstrong was reported to be in remission. John shared, “[his diagnosis was] pretty much the same as mine, but his spread to his brain. Yet he is still alive, he is cancer-free!
“I have felt hopeful. No one wants cancer, obviously,” John said. “But to hear the news that [in 2024] it is over 90% treatable and even curable… that lifted a weight from my chest.”
Besides providing an excellent peptalk, Dr. Kaae made John feel comfortable by listening to his concerns and adjusting his treatment plan specifically to his lifestyle. Originally, he was prescribed three chemotherapy medications, Bleomycin, Etoposide and Cisplatin. But he shared with Dr. Kaae that he was a past smoker, and he was worried that the bleomycin would have a negative effect on his lung health. With this in mind, John and Dr. Kaae agreed modified the treatment plan to exclude the medication and instead John would complete an extra round of chemotherapy using the other two medications.
John shared it’s hard to be negative about his situation because he is surrounded by such a great support team. From the nurses in the infusion suite to his parents and husband, he knows he has a team of people he can rely on when he needs it.
“It honestly makes me want to tear up. The Clinic has a caring atmosphere. Everyone [in my life] is super supportive. They understand that if I’m not acting like my normal self, it’s because I have poison going through me. So yeah, I’m going to change a little bit, but at the end of the day it’s still me. It’s been nice to have these people to lean on.”
Even though his parents still reside in Oregon, and it is a tough time for all of them, their familial bond has only gotten stronger the past few months. His father made the trip to Great Falls to help John recover after his surgery and his mom visited when he started chemotherapy. And of course, his husband has been by his side the entire time.
“He’s been here for so much, and [my parents] just love him so much for being here for me every day. He and I cried together and have done everything together. He truly is my rock.”
John and his husband have adjusted their life to accommodate John’s needs and energy levels. Often, they find themselves spending more time inside playing video games and watching movies. But John says it is had been helpful to keep as normal of a life as possible. When he feels up to it, they try to go hiking out of town and away from cellphone service to get a distraction from the diagnosis.
“It’s important to take time for yourself and your mental health especially. It can be super hard to get a diagnosis like this but make sure you are still doing things that are healthy for you and your mental health. Do things you want to do. Live in the moment. Go out on the weekends even when part of you wants to stay inside and relax. Because you never know how much time you have left, and you never know what is going to happen.”
Cancer has turned John’s world upside down, but he has surprised himself with how positive he has become.
“Things don’t stress me out as much. Like, when I’m at work and I have a problem I’m like ‘oh yeah, this issue is happening, but other things are going on that are bigger. I have been getting through this [cancer] so I can handle anything’. It’s been great to know that I have built that strength in myself. I feel like that has made me unstoppable. When you’re really determined you can get through anything.”
In mid-July 2024, John completed his last round of chemo; he and his doctors are still monitoring his condition. John hopes to instill a sense of power in other young men by reminding them to perform self-examinations, just like he did only a handful of months ago.
“When I think back to the very beginning there was a lot of shame. Because I didn’t want someone to touch me down there. But at the same time, it is so important for your health and wellbeing to get checked out. Don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself”