Absolutely, David MacLean had what he calls that 'gulper moment' when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in his bone marrow.
"I didn't know a lot about cancer, but that one sounded bad, really bad," he said.
It is bad.
That 2023 lymphoma diagnosis followed a diagnosis a few months earlier of prostate cancer and basal cell carcinoma (skin cancer).
But, rather than let this triple-whammy of cancers ruin his life, MacLean decided to fight with courage and an attitude of gratitude.
"Courage is what you have when you push through fear, it's not the absence of fear," MacLean pointed out.
"And, right from the get go, I felt I could get through this challenge with an attitude of gratitude. I'm a man of faith, so God and I had to have a conversation about the trifecta of cancers."
From that, he felt cancer could be an inspiration for him to become a better person.
"Being a better person means spending yourself for the benefit of others," he explained.
A decade ago, MacLean did a TEDx talk titled 'We are meant to be spent.'
Little did he know at the time that he would one day apply it to his cancer battle.
"With my family, friends, clients and church we increased the love," said MacLean.
"It was a powerful process."
MacLean leads a healthy life and has a minimal family history of cancer, so why he got three cancers at once is a mystery.
MacLean is a former president of the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce who works in leadership development with The Executive Committee and has his own writing, speaking and training business called Wholehearted Leaders.
For years, he'd been planning to write a book titled 'Wholehearted Leadership.'
"Cancer was also an impetus for me to finish the book," he said.
In appreciation of the world-class care he received, and continues to receive, at the BC Cancer-Kelowna centre, he's donating $1 from the sale of each book to the BC Cancer Foundation.
'Wholehearted Leadership'.
The book is for sale for $16.49 through his website https://www.wholeheartedleaders.com/about and amazon.ca.
MacLean's three guiding principles through cancer are vulnerability, courage and love, the same trio of themes that comes up over and over again in the book as well.
MacLean has dubbed 2023, the year he endured more than 60 chemotherapy treatments, his 'Annis Mirabilis' a play on the term 'Annis Horribilis' that Queen Elizabeth used in 1992, a year of royal scandals, marriage breakdowns and a fire at Windsor Castle.
However, 'Annis Mirabilis' translates to 'wonderful year', something you'd imagine you'd ever hear in relation to cancer.
MacLean will continue chemo therapy every three months until January 2026 for his lymphoma.
The prostate cancer was caught early, so he now seems to be in the clear there.
However, he continues to have little isotopes the size of a grain of rice injected into his prostate to release therapeutic radiation that kills cancer cells while maintaining the healthy tissue nearby.
The skin cancer on his back and ear was removed and grafted with skin from his neck.
All the cancer treatments and chemo torched his immune system, so he received an intense monthly blood transfusion to boost his antibodies.
"I'm feeling great and looking forward to the future," he said.
MacLean encourages all men over 40 to get a simple blood test to measure their PSA (prostate-specific antigen) to detect any cancer early.
"If you wait until you have symptoms it's too late," he said.
He also wants to thank everyone at the BC Cancer-Kelowna centre.
"It takes a community to treat cancer and in Kelowna we have world-class treatment right here with great outcomes," he said.
September is both prostate and leukemia awareness month.
Half of British Columbians will face cancer at some point in their lifetime.
