By Danielle Pierce

Greg Leitz is no stranger to battling adverse circumstances.

He fought hundreds of fires during his 20-year tenure with the Spotsylvania County Fire Department. As an EMT, he fights against time to ensure patients get the emergency care they desperately need.

Greg has also endured personal battles. In 2013, he suffered a stroke and fought his way to recovery with the help of the Comprehensive Stroke Center at VCU Medical Center.

But the most recent challenge facing this 55-year-old is one that was revealed during a routine screening offered to retired firefighters. When tests came back showing thickening around the bladder wall, Greg’s urologist recommended more testing and biopsies.

The official diagnosis came on January 4, 2024: Gleason 9 prostate cancer, an aggressive form of cancer that had spread to Greg’s pelvis and one thoracic vertebra.

“When I first learned of the diagnosis, I was angry. I was so angry - mentally and spiritually. It's probably the angriest I've ever been in my life,” Greg said. “I went outside and balled up my fists and as I started to raise them over my head, I stopped. And instead of feeling anger, I said, ‘thank you’. And that has been my attitude toward this ever since: one of blessing and one of hope.”

Video produced by Joe Kuttenkuler, Enterprise Marketing and Communications 

Greg isn’t alone in his cancer diagnosis. Cancer is the leading cause of death among firefighters, and research suggests firefighters are at higher risk of certain types of cancers due to exposure to different chemicals while battling fires.

Recognizing the strong support system he had in the firehouse and from VCU Health, Greg knew where to turn during this critical moment. He wasn’t going to fight this battle alone.

“My faith keeps me going,” Greg explained. “I have hope and faith in my doctors, in the facility. I know what they did for me when I first came here when I had my stroke and I’m confident in the care they are providing for me now."

Connecting with the Firefighter Cancer Support Network and Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center

After telling his family about the diagnosis, Greg’s next call was to the Firefighter Cancer Support Network (FCSN), an organization that provides support and resources for firefighters and EMS providers who are battling cancer.

VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center ranked among the top 4% in the country, is a partner of the FCSN and collaborates with them to provide medical care and cancer treatments to firefighters. The FCSN advocate immediately connected Greg to a nurse navigator at Massey.

“I got three phone calls back the day I made that first call,” Greg said. “Two of them were about medical records and the third was to schedule my appointment. Things moved fast. I don't know if I would have been able to get seen anywhere else that quickly if it wasn’t for the relationship that Massey has with the FCSN.”

Greg Leitz served with the Spotsylvania County Fire Department for 20 years. (Contributed photos)

Once at Massey, Greg met Alfredo Urdaneta, M.D., a radiation oncologist.

“The first time I heard about Greg’s case was through our multidisciplinary clinic,” Urdaneta said. “His case was brought forward by our colleague, Dr. John Melson, who wanted the group to discuss the best path forward for Greg.”

Melson, a medical oncologist, and Urdaneta are part of a multidisciplinary clinic with a team of doctors representing at least ten different specialty areas throughout Massey. They meet weekly to discuss the best approach for patient care. During these discussions, they review each patient’s case and diagnostic material.

In Greg’s case, the team reviewed his pathology with the pathologist and his radiographs with a radiologist. They also had a geneticist there, who recommends whether genetic testing would be needed.

“This multidisciplinary clinic is unique because the decision of how to take care of that patient comes from a group, and not just from an individual physician,” Urdaneta said. “That’s part of what makes Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center so special.”

The team agreed that an aggressive approach to treat Greg’s cancer would be the best route forward.

"Since he was young and healthy overall, we decided an aggressive approach was appropriate," Urdaneta recalled.

Greg's treatment involved complete androgen blockade and radiation therapy to both the primary and metastatic sites using stereotactic radiation. This focused radiation aims to improve long-term control of the cancer and potentially achieve a cure.

Greg's treatment plan involved an external form of radiation therapy called stereotactic radiation. (Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

Finding a home away from home for patients in need

The more aggressive plan also meant that Greg would be drained – both mentally and physically – following his treatments.

Greg lives more than 70 miles from VCU Medical Center. Traveling to and from his home would mean driving over 140 miles roundtrip, Monday through Friday, for four weeks.

“My doctors told me that one of the things they say that's essential to getting through this is getting rest,” Greg said. “So when they told me about The Doorways, I immediately looked into it and reached out to them.”

The Doorways is a nonprofit and privately-run organization dedicated to offering accommodations for little or no cost to patients, their families, and caregivers that need to be close to VCU Medical Center, and other area partners, prior to, during or after medical treatment.

Having the option to stay at The Doorways provided Greg with more than just a place to rest his head. It’s also provided him with a sense of community, rejuvenating his faith and hope during this difficult time.

“I've had several bad days where I haven't felt well,” Greg said. “Walking down the hallway or the elevator, I'll run into somebody that's having a bad day, too. And we've been able to talk and I've been able to pray with them or they have prayed for me. Every time I try to get angry at my situation, something is placed there, where it just solidifies my faith even more.”

From volunteering at community events to serving as a firefighter and EMT, Greg's hopeful spirit inspires others wherever he goes. (Contributed photo)

Inspiring others with his unrelenting hope

Hope and faith are what keeps Greg going – they’re also what stands out to everyone he meets.

“Greg is just an outstanding human being. You can ask all of our staff here – everyone is in love with him,” Urdaneta said. “He is the epitome of unrelenting hope. It’s something that he transmits and emanates because he loves life and he loves to live. And it makes sense that he's dedicated his life to being a firefighter – to saving lives.”

Greg carried this hopeful, fighting spirit with him from the very start of his appointments to when he ended his last day of treatment with the ringing of the bell.

Ringing the bell signifies the end of radiation or chemotherapy treatment and has become a symbolic gesture of hope for cancer patients around the world.

Greg was excited to take part in this tradition at Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. But he also had something else planned. Waiting for him outside of his last appointment was a fire truck from his unit. More than 30 firefighters, EMS providers and members of his care team – the people who he has brought hope to – were there to cheer him on as he rang the big bell on the fire truck.

“I just want to let everybody know that that bell signifies hope and I’m going to ring it loud and all the way to the interstate to let everyone know that there is hope,” Greg said. “Even in your darkest moment, there's hope.”