At the age of 27, Michael Moyles sustained an accident that would forever alter the course of his life. He was a U.S. Air Force Captain and a member of a local St. Louis municipal league when he died. While defending his title, Moyles was knocked unconscious for 30 seconds and had his right arm paralyzed by a collision with another player. He was permitted to go home that night after the CT scan revealed no significant injuries, but the doctors wanted to be safe and ordered an MRI scan just in case. Things began to go south at that point.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: -pilot37-

Michael was startled to hear the words “Mike, we’ve found something” as the physicians gathered around the screen, all attempting to figure out what they were seeing. After a year of tests and doctor visits, Moyles received the news that he had astrocytoma as the result of the incident. It was cancer of the brain.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

Michael recalls the moment he proposed to Angie, whom he had been dating at the time of the diagnosis. When she agreed to marry a young, robust, and thriving Air Force officer, she ended up marrying a terminally ill cancer patient. Six months following Mike’s diagnosis, they were married.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

In spite of his girlfriend’s support, the outlook was bleak. Doctors predicted that he had little more than six or eight years to live. However, that was over two decades ago, and Michael is still going strong..

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

His first surgery occurred on his first wedding anniversary, April 28th, 2001. A 2.8-cm tumor was removed from Dr. Keith Black’s right frontal lobe by his best neurosurgeons. However, despite the fact that the right frontal lobe is mostly responsible for memory and personality, Mike claims that Moyles did not experience any substantial changes and continued to improve in the six months following his surgery.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

A check-up scan in the spring of 2005 revealed that he had been in remission for four years when the disease reappeared. We couldn’t monitor it for a year to see what it was doing this time since it was bigger, faster-growing, and more aggressive. Since the tumors recurred, doctors advised chemotherapy as a treatment option for the second time. For even the most hardened of patients, “this is a word that will strike fear into their hearts,” said Moyles.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

After several months of chemotherapy, Michael found that getting out and running helped him feel better. He soon found himself training for his first marathon while undergoing treatment. Chemotherapy was continued after he finished the treatment since the cancer had reappeared. Moyles continued chemotherapy, completed two more marathons, and gave birth to a daughter during the next ten months. Despite Mike’s best efforts, the cancer became resistant to the treatment, so he was forced to undergo yet another operation.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

The road ahead wasn’t an easy one. A section of Michael’s skull had to be removed as a result of numerous medical issues. As a result of the cancer-fighting treatments, Moyles was able to live another day. “Team Michael Moyles” was born as a result of his renewed interest in running. My brother-in-law Clint Janson and I began the team in 2008 and raised about $100,000 through various fundraising activities, such as running raises and motivational speeches. We also had silent auctions.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles

On Reddit earlier this month, Michael’s nephew, Sren Janson, recounted his story, garnering nearly 17k upvotes and 721 comments. It is Sren’s “unwavering faith and perseverance, and simply refusing to give up” that he considers the best attribute in him, he said.

Guy Who Was Supposed To Live For 6 Years After Brain Cancer Diagnosis, Lives For 20+ Years, Beats It 4 Times

Image credits: Michael Moyles