In this episode of the Project Purple Podcast, host Dino Verrelli speaks with Lew Worthington, a former pastor and seminary professor turned author from Lansing, Michigan. He courageously shares his remarkable journey with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, describing how a persistent side pain quickly turned into a life-altering diagnosis in 2020 that he was told gave him just months to live.
Lew recounts to listeners the difficult road he had ahead of him, undergoing intensive chemotherapy, targeted radiation, and devastating side effects. He mentions that, despite the odds of survival, he reached remission, only to face a recurrence of cancer that tested his resolve and faith once again. Fortunately, Lew shares that his health is stable, and he stays active playing tennis two to three times a week.
Despite the bleak statistics surrounding pancreatic cancer, Lew’s resilience propelled him forward. His story goes far beyond the medical, exploring profound reflections on life, hope, mortality, and spirituality. He grapples with the “why” of suffering and shares how his faith evolved through moments of doubt and acceptance. Lew also talks about the importance of compassion, not just from loved ones, but from the wider community.
He discusses his recent book, Unlikely Hope: My Journey From Dying to Living with Pancreatic Cancer, a thoughtful autobiography that chronicles not only his two-time battle with cancer, but also the meaning he discovered along the way, blending medical realities with philosophical and theological insights.
Listen in on this moving conversation that offers not only a story of survival, but also encouragement to listeners to always cling to whatever hope they can find, all while advocating for improved early pancreatic cancer detection.
Subscribe to the Project Purple Podcast to hear more stories from the pancreatic cancer community.
Learn more about Lew on his website https://lewworthington.com/ and find his book on Amazon here https://www.amazon.com/Unlikely-Hope-Journey-Living-Pancreatic/dp/B0F896HY38.
