Adventurer defies odds to beat Stage 4 pancreatic cancer

By Lauren Pastrana

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    MIAMI (WFOR) — Not long ago, a Stage 4 pancreatic cancer diagnosis was considered a death sentence. But survival rates are improving and one Miami man is living proof!

Manny Garcia has a second chance at life and he’s making sure to live it to the fullest.

When it comes to taking risks, Garcia likes his odds.

“It’s like anything in life is too dangerous,” he said. “What’s the point of even getting out of the house or getting in your car and driving down the street?”

Garcia, an avid skydiver and base jumper, was just in his mid-20s when life as he knew it came crashing down in 2019.

“At first it was like light pain, light nausea, like kind of like, oh, it’s a little weird here,” he said.

After eight weeks of symptoms and seemingly endless tests and procedures, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

His initial feeling: relief.

“Even though it was dire and it wasn’t great, just finding out what it was brought relief,” Garcia said. “Like, ‘Oh, like I’m dying. That’s why I feel so terrible.’ “

He sought treatment at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center in Miami.

While he had the support of family, friends and his care team, he admits he sometimes felt lonely.

“I was on the 11th floor, which is the chemo floor, at the U Health Tower. And I was the only person under 30 there,” he said.

If you’re thinking — “26– that’s so young!” You’re right. It is.

“We have been pretty concerned and with some recent data that has shown that unfortunately, there has been an increased incidence in pancreatic cancer in younger populations,” Dr. Gretel Terrero, the associate director for outreach at Sylvester said.

Terrero says we’re seeing the same trend in colorectal cancers in younger patients as well.

“The hypothesis right now is that it’s related to our lifestyle, our modern lifestyle,” she said. “Right now, there’s a recent publication showing that 3/4 of our nation is obese.”

She said the symptoms can be hard to spot, and that’s what leads to late diagnoses.

But she warns that dramatic changes in energy status and sudden weight loss are red flags.

Terrero said there’s hope in the form of “actionable mutations,” which allow for more customized care for patients like Manny Garcia.

“Seeing Manny thrive and seeing all the things that he does for fun as a musician and also as an adventurer is truly amazing and this is why we do this,” she said.

For Garcia, it was the promise of more high-flying fun that helped him get through.

“I was making plans for what I was going to do when I got out of the hospital and skydiving was a big part of that,” he said. “I know like I just had like this resolve thanks to like my support system. Because of Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and because of my family and all this stuff, I had this fearlessness that I knew like I’m going to be okay.”

Garcia recently surpassed his five-year survivor milestone. He’s looking forward to reaching year 10 and beyond.

In the meantime, he says he’s not afraid of death but will keep sharing his story so others can keep on living.

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