Cancerwise

Retired Army Col. Lawrence Henry, Ph.D., has a storied military career that spans almost three decades. He served six years as a Military Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Army, then spent over 20 years as a Green Beret before retiring in 2020. He’s been deployed to Africa, Central America, South America, Korea and in support of the Global War on Terrorism.

“It wasn’t abnormal for me to occasionally have gas, an upset stomach or even blood in my stool because of the unique places my career has taken me and the foods I’ve eaten,” he says.

But in 2021, he began having stomach pains so bad that they kept him up at night. He’d also feel full after a bowel movement. So, he and his wife, T'Lira, decided he should get a colonoscopy.

The colonoscopy revealed a tumor in his colon. After seeing a doctor in Tampa, where he was living at the time, Lawrence was diagnosed with combat service-related stage 3C colon cancer. He was 50.

Doctors believed the cancer was linked to exposure to burn pits during his military service. Lawrence received treatment locally, which included surgery followed by 12 rounds of chemotherapy.

He rang the bell in March 2022 to mark the end of treatment.

“It was a surreal feeling because I know that some people don’t get to ring the bell. I felt really blessed to come out on the other side of cancer,” he says. “Ringing the bell was a time for reflection, to be thankful and really start advocating.”