SAN ANTONIO -- Love for his family and his profession in the medical field is keeping one San Antonio man motivated to live every day to the fullest despite his fight against terminal cancer.
- Appeared cancer-free a year after diagnosis
- CT scan showed cancer spots on his lungs in 2019
- Continuing to work to become anesthesiologist
In 2017, doctors diagnosed Brett Larsen with stage 4 colorectal cancer.
"I was shocked, honestly. It took a few days for me to really accept it. I was maybe in denial for a little while and after that I was probably angry, I think," said Larsen.
Colorectal cancer occurs when tumors form in the lining of the body's large intestine. Patients older than 50 years old are more likely to be diagnosed with the disease. Yet, Larsen was only 31 years old and fresh out of medical school.
Brett Larsen lays in a hospital bed asleep while his wife Kylee Larsen holds his hand (Courtesy: The Larsen Family)
"When I was diagnosed, they were really fast about starting treatment so I started chemotherapy and radiation right away. Then a month or two after that, I had my first surgery to remove the cancer that had spread to my liver," he said.
Larsen says he continued chemotherapy for another eight months and had a few more surgeries to remove the cancer. After a year following his diagnosis, he appeared cancer free, but a CT scan in 2019 showed cancer spots on his lungs. At that point, doctors told him his cancer was terminal and he had at most three years to live.
"It was one of those things where you think, 'Why me? Why would this happen to us?', it was hard," said Kylee Larsen, his wife.
Kylee Larsen said over time the couple's hard hearts softened. Now, the Larsen family focuses on their time spent together and not the time left, especially with their toddler Leo.
The Larsen Family takes a selfie (Courtesy: The Larsen Family)
"We find hope in being with each other. That's where we find the most stability and comfort especially in making memories with Leo," she said.
Brett Larsen is also continuing to pursue his dreams of becoming an anesthesiologist. The doctor and second-year medical resident spends up to 80 hours a week caring for patients at University Hospital.
"Right now, the biggest thing for me is to keep working," he said.
Though he is considered a doctor in the hospital, Larsen says he isn't paid like one just yet. His goal is to work as long as he can to save money and leave his family in the best financial situation possible, if he were to pass.
Brett Larsen talks to a patient at University Hospital (Courtesy: Brett Larsen)
His son is also a priority.
"My hope is to play as large of a role that I can in his life and teach him everything I can. I want to see him learn and grow. I want to just to be there for as many of the big moments in his life that I can, so that is my motivation to keep going," said Larsen.
For now, his message to others is to get checked if something doesn't feel right.
"It's actually starting to show up in younger and younger people in their 20s and 30s. I go to chemotherapy and that's something I noticed, there's younger people with the same thing. So that is something I encourage people to do, because it's something if you get [your colon] checked out early and find [colorectal cancer] early it is treatable and curable," he said.
A GoFundMe has been set up for the family to help offset medical expenses.