Army Veteran: Cancer care at VA saved my life
“I’m a living witness”
For nearly 20 years, Darryl Lynch led Environmental Management Service (EMS) at Oklahoma City VA Medical Center (OKCVAMC). His team ensured the hospital was clean and safe for Veterans every day.
Before joining VA, Lynch spent 22 years in the Army as a logistics specialist. He deployed to Panama, Bosnia and Iraq, and participated in Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield. His job was making sure soldiers had what they needed to complete the mission, a skill that carried over into his work at VA.
In 2022, the hospital where he worked became the place that helped save his life.
A hard diagnosis
During a regular checkup, Lynch’s doctor noticed changes in his Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) test, a blood test that helps detect prostate cancer early. Follow-up scans confirmed Gleason 9, Stage IVA prostate cancer. It was an advanced and aggressive form of the disease.
“When you hear the word cancer, you’re scared,” Lynch shared. “Even working here, I was nervous about receiving treatment because my colleagues would see me at my most vulnerable.”
The negative things he’d heard about VA over the years also began weighing heavily on his heart. Despite initial hesitations, he chose OKCVAMC for his cancer care.
Eight weeks and one day
Lynch’s treatment plan included eight weeks and one day of radiation therapy, led by Dr. Christopher Bozarth, the chief of Radiation Oncology at OKCVAMC and an Army Veteran.
The treatment used a linear accelerator, a large machine that moves around the patient to deliver precise beams of radiation to the tumor.
Ashley Arres, a radiation therapist, said that imaging helps the team plan and guide every treatment. “We use CT scans to shape the radiation beam to match the tumor’s size and position,” she said. “That allows us to target the cancer and protect healthy areas nearby.”
Beating cancer, changing focus
“OKCVAMC has the same know-how and technology the community has, if not better,” Lynch said. “They showed me first-hand, from the doctor who personally followed up to explain my PSA reading, to the nursing staff, the housekeepers to the schedulers.”
He smiled and added, “Just give us the opportunity to treat you because we will. I’m a living witness. I’m prostate cancer-free.”
Since finishing treatment, Lynch has gone back to school for sociology and psychology. He plans to become a social worker and volunteer at OKCVAMC to help other Veterans facing prostate cancer.
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