Approximately 2,800 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, and for more than 500 of them, the diagnosis will be fatal. Hendricks County resident Darrell Skaggs is making it his mission to spread the word and encourage men to rid themselves of the stigma surrounding the disease.
This month, in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, he wants to save one more man by learning about male breast cancer.
Skaggs was diagnosed for the first time in 2010. “I had gallbladder issues and they did a CAT scan,” he said. “The gallbladder was bad, but they also found a mass in my left breast and they wanted me to get a mammogram.”
The appointment to get the mammogram required him to walk into the women’s center, and Skaggs was reluctant. His wife of more than 50 years, Wanda, suggested most of the people would think the appointment was for her and she was right.
Skaggs said the only question on the form pertaining to a man was the line to place his name.
“After the mammogram they wanted an ultrasound and then they did a biopsy that same day, and three days later my doctor called me and said it was breast cancer,” Skaggs said.
Skaggs received the news at work and headed home, but he didn’t want to call his wife; he would wait until she came home that afternoon. It was a long wait and gave Skaggs plenty of time to think.
“I graduated high school in 1969 and served with the United States Army in Vietnam in the early ‘70s,” he said. “I’m a military guy and a sports guy. This is embarrassing for a man. I felt like I had a woman’s disease, and it affected my whole family.”
After talking and praying with his wife that afternoon, they began researching and Skaggs was in the surgeon’s office two weeks later.
They removed the tumor, but found a second surgery was needed to take additional lymph nodes. After the surgery he underwent four rounds of chemotherapy and took preventative medication for five years, eventually being told he was in the clear.
Those years were transformative for Skaggs and his family. Not only were they dealing with their own emotions and concerns, but they were also still mulling over the facts concerning men and a breast cancer diagnosis.
“For about a year I didn’t want to talk about it,” he said. “I didn’t want anyone to know, but my family kept encouraging me to talk about it because other men need to know about this. My son said there was a contest with Major League Baseball, picking an honorary bat girl for each team. He suggested I enter it and I said, ‘That’s for women.’ He said, ‘Send in the application anyway,’”
Skaggs was chosen, and soon after, more and more organizations began reaching out to him to represent the men.
“I got a call from Susan G. Komen and they wanted to share my story in their monthly magazine,” he said. “Then in 2012, Ford Motor Company did a Warriors in Pink campaign and I was chosen along with 10 other breast cancer patients to participate. We traveled to New York and L.A., modeled clothing and other items, and had ads in magazines. There’s a nice documentary about it and all the money raised went toward breast cancer research.”
Churches, nonprofits and other organizations in the community began asking Skaggs to speak at their breast cancer awareness events and the American Cancer Society enlisted him for their Reach for Recovery program.
“Reach for Recovery is for other men diagnosed,” he said. “I have a very supportive family but I needed another man to talk to, another guy that’s been through this, and it’s helpful to see a guy who has gone through what you’re going through today.”
He’s currently talking to five men all over the country who are looking for a mentor, and one who knows the ropes.
The biggest problem, according to Skaggs, is finding symptoms far too late. If men have discounted the symptoms, or shrugged them off as a strained pectoral muscle or an injury from work, they put off going to the doctor for far too long.
“When the doctor found my cancer, I had no symptoms at the time,” he said. “If it wasn’t for my gallbladder, by the time it was found it would have been way too late, and a larger percentage of men die because we’re ignoring it.”
Symptoms include soreness around the breast, nipples draining or changing color, a lump or swelling in the breast, and more.
Unfortunately, Skaggs’ journey hasn’t been as standard as chemo, radiation and a clean bill of health.
In 2019 he received his second breast cancer diagnosis.
“I wasn’t feeling well again and I went to the ER,” he said. “They sent me to my oncologist and the cancer was back. They started me on another drug that had a lot of side effects. It was new but about as bad as the chemo. I was in remission three years later.”
In April of 2024 it returned – this time as stage four.
“Stage four is the worst,” Skaggs said. “It’s bad. There are new drugs and you don’t know what the side effects will be. Whether you do the drugs or the chemo, both are terrible. I was sick forever. But I know God and I know he’s not going to give me anything worse than I can handle. It’ll be sad. I think about my boys, my grandkids and my wife, but I try to stay positive.”
Even through his own worries, Skaggs and his family agree that he shouldn’t shy away from the mission.
The veteran and sports nut wants men to know they shouldn’t be embarrassed or frightened. The earlier they find it, the better the outcome.
He said eventually, the need to warn other men to be diligent and check symptoms with their doctor outweighed his own embarrassment or nervousness.
“Other men need to know about breast cancer,” he said. “At first it was tough to talk in front of a big group, but after a while it got easier. If sharing my story means one person gets something checked out, it was a win.”
He’s still fighting.
Skaggs takes a daily pill and gets two injections every four weeks that put him in bed for three or four days afterward. He wants as much time as possible with his wife, two sons, two daughters-in-law and four grandchildren.
