In the Loop: Secret service agent - running and living with stage 4 lung cancer

In the Loop: Secret service agent — running and living with stage 4 lung cancer

By
Laurel Kelly

December 17, 2019

In the Loop patient Rod Wellman participating in a race

Rod Wellman, a 46-year-old lifelong athlete and never-smoker, was blindsided by a diagnosis of lung cancer. Thanks to his efforts to raise awareness, others are learning about the disease.

Rod Wellman stood at the starting line of the Javelina Jundred, ready to tackle the 100 kilometer race. Like the runners who surrounded him, Rod had put in hundreds of training miles to prepare for the grueling event near Fountain Hills, Arizona. He had a plan for hydrating and refueling and had a team to support him on the course. But there was one thing separating Rod from the rest of the pack. The 46-year-old lifelong athlete and never-smoker would be covering the distance with stage 4 lung cancer.

"I'm proof that if you have lungs, you can get lung cancer," Rod, a special agent with the United States Secret Service, tells us.

Read the rest of the story.

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This story originally appeared on the In the Loop blog.