On August 27, 2008, Justin received life-changing news. The neurosurgeon informed him that he had two tumors in his neck, two in his left shoulder, a large mass in his left lung, multiple malignant nodules on his lungs and a spot on his liver. His wife Kristy, who was with him when he got the news, said there were also signs of cancer in his ribs, sternum, hips and so many spots on his spine that they lost count. He now knew what was causing him pain.

Though Justin had quit using tobacco, a deadly, addictive drug, his body had already been damaged. After four cycles of chemotherapy and many other treatment attempts, Justin was not seeing any positive results. But, he did not give up hope. He kept fighting. When a new combination of drugs was presented, Justin was willing to give these a try. After six weeks of the new treatment, his chest CT scan on May 12, 2009, showed phenomenal results.

“The primary lung mass shrunk by 90 percent, all other lung nodules and tumors vanished with the remaining ones only showing signs of necrosis (dead cells), plus the liver tumor shrunk 75 percent,” Kristy said.

Justin’s doctor described the scan results as “beyond unusual and simply miraculous.” Although the radiation had been challenging, causing Justin pain and making him unable to eat solid foods, the Andrews were ecstatic on August 11, 2009, when the PET scan showed no active disease.

Over the next several months, Justin’s health continued to improve. He started speaking out against tobacco at local TRU events and got involved with TRU’s sponsor, the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund, to create public service announcements highlighting his battle with tobacco-related cancer.

Those who have had cancer, or know a loved one with cancer, know that disease can easily return. Justin’s doctor monitored him closely by performing periodic scans to make sure the cancer had not recurred. Unfortunately, during a scan in January 2010, the doctors found signs of new cancer spots on his lungs and liver. Justin went back on the chemotherapy cocktail that had brought such great results. He and his family continued on with high hopes. Between January and June, spots appeared and disappeared as he continued his fight. In August, a chest scan was scheduled. This showed that some of the small, pebble sized nodules in his lungs were still active and growing slowly. Before being prescribed a new formula of medications, the doctor wanted to perform a brain scan on Justin since it had been one year since his last.

Learning that you have cancer takes a toll on your life. Learning that it is gone brings your spirits up, and learning that it is back, brings you back down. Justin and his family have been on this emotional rollercoaster for the past two years. And to make it worse, they found out more bad news this past September. The brain CT scan revealed two to four cancer spots on his brain, meaning Justin would have to start whole-brain radiation. He also began radiation on his hip because the cancer was causing him such great pain. This was just another road block in his tremendous fight.

Justin wants smokers to know that cancer can happen to anyone, at any age. “We only get one body here on Earth. Why fill it with toxic fumes?” he asked. “Take care of your body and treasure your health.”

Justin isn’t able to do the things he wants to with his son because of the pain and fatigue caused by his disease. “I know it could be so much worse so I am thankful for the things that I can do and for the days that I feel good enough to do them,” he said. “I really am living proof that this can happen to anyone. I was the quarterback of the football team and a star basketball player in high school. I was extremely athletic and active. Cancer does not discriminate.”