Robert Dorchak
Patient/Survivor |
Rectal - Stage III |
Age at Diagnosis: 41
In August 2022, at 41, I was diagnosed with Stage 3C rectal cancer after what I thought was just a hemorrhoid. A colonoscopy revealed a large tumor that had already spread to my lymph nodes. Within just a few weeks, treatments began. I was 14 years into my career in the Coast Guard, 11 years into marriage, proud father of a 4yr old, and owned 2 small businesses. Cancer didn’t care, it began dismantling me. Treatment was brutal—burning pain, neuropathy, bowel issues, and brain fog—but the hardest part for me was the mental battle. At my lowest, I felt God had abandoned me, guilt, shame, sadness had overwhelmed me but in that darkness I found faith, strength, and purpose. Today, I’m grateful to say I am cancer free, though survivorship is an ongoing journey. I even wrote a book, 10 Commandments to Survivorship.
Robert Dorchak
Patient/Survivor |
Rectal - Stage III |
Age at Diagnosis: 41
In August 2022, at 41, I was diagnosed with Stage 3C rectal cancer after what I thought was just a hemorrhoid. A colonoscopy revealed a large tumor that had already spread to my lymph nodes. Within just a few weeks, treatments began. I was 14 years into my career in the Coast Guard, 11 years into marriage, proud father of a 4yr old, and owned 2 small businesses. Cancer didn’t care, it began dismantling me. Treatment was brutal—burning pain, neuropathy, bowel issues, and brain fog—but the hardest part for me was the mental battle. At my lowest, I felt God had abandoned me, guilt, shame, sadness had overwhelmed me but in that darkness I found faith, strength, and purpose. Today, I’m grateful to say I am cancer free, though survivorship is an ongoing journey. I even wrote a book, 10 Commandments to Survivorship.
"Faith and community can carry you when you can’t walk alone anymore."
Robert Dorchak
Patient/Survivor |
Rectal - Stage III |
Age at Diagnosis: 41
In August 2022, at 41, I was diagnosed with Stage 3C rectal cancer after what I thought was just a hemorrhoid. A colonoscopy revealed a large tumor that had already spread to my lymph nodes. Within just a few weeks, treatments began. I was 14 years into my career in the Coast Guard, 11 years into marriage, proud father of a 4yr old, and owned 2 small businesses. Cancer didn’t care, it began dismantling me. Treatment was brutal—burning pain, neuropathy, bowel issues, and brain fog—but the hardest part for me was the mental battle. At my lowest, I felt God had abandoned me, guilt, shame, sadness had overwhelmed me but in that darkness I found faith, strength, and purpose. Today, I’m grateful to say I am cancer free, though survivorship is an ongoing journey. I even wrote a book, 10 Commandments to Survivorship.
"Faith and community can carry you when you can’t walk alone anymore."
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