Steve Roberts

AI Summary of Steve Roberts

Steve Roberts was diagnosed with biphasic pleural mesothelioma, a type of cancer affecting the lining of the lungs, in early 2024. Despite an initial prognosis of only about four months to live, Steve has defied expectations and is now living a full and active life more than two years later. His story offers hope that, with proper treatment and a strong support system, individuals diagnosed with mesothelioma can continue to enjoy meaningful experiences and a positive quality of life.

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Happy stories can be few and far between with mesothelioma, a particularly aggressive and deadly form of cancer. Every now and then, however, a patient’s perseverance shows everyone there can be a full life even after a mesothelioma diagnosis.

Steve Roberts was 71 years old when he received a diagnosis of biphasic pleural mesothelioma, and given a prognosis of about four months to live. That was more than two years ago, and Steve’s scans are getting better every time.

Along the way, Steve has refused to let his mesothelioma battle affect his life, maintaining an active lifestyle and providing hope that even a mesothelioma diagnosis doesn’t have to be the end of anything.

“I live a full life,” Steve said. “I haven’t let it slow me down. I guess it’s mind over matter. I’m just not going to quit. That’s the way I look at it. I’m going to live.”

Steve Roberts’ Mesothelioma Journey

At the end of 2023, Steve Roberts – retired after a career working in construction – was enjoying life with his wife Kathy, his children, and his grandchildren in the small town of Tracy City, Tennessee.

Then, he started experiencing a cough, which he initially just chalked up to allergies. His symptoms progressively got worse, and after he began suffering from severe back pain, he finally asked for help from his daughter Devin, a nurse practitioner. When they checked his heart rate, it became apparent something deeper was wrong.

“It started hurting pretty bad, and my daughter had me check my heart rate, and it was getting high,” Steve said. “I called her one morning and said, ‘Honey, I have to do something – I need some help. I can’t sleep at night.’ I blamed it on my new recliner, but I knew it wasn’t the recliner.”

Devin had connections at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, about an hour and a half away in Nashville, and was able to get Steve in to see an oncologist. At the beginning of January 2024, Steve received a diagnosis of biphasic pleural mesothelioma, a form of the disease located in the lining of the lungs.

Steve previously knew little about mesothelioma, much less how to approach battling such a deadly cancer. Fortunately, he wasn’t doing it alone. His family’s support, taking an active role in his care and treatment, were crucial in the weeks to come.

Finding Mesothelioma Guide

On the same day her father received his mesothelioma diagnosis, Steve’s daughter Kellie submitted a form through the MesotheliomaGuide.com website seeking information and resources. She was immediately connected with Karen Ritter, our lead patient advocate and registered nurse, who provided guidance, a list of mesothelioma specialists to contact, and other resources to help the family navigate this difficult and uncertain time.

Aside from the oncologist at Vanderbilt, Steve also – on Ritter’s recommendation – consulted with a mesothelioma surgeon, Dr. Joseph Friedberg, at Temple Health in Philadelphia. Dr. Friedberg confirmed that he was not a surgical candidate, so Steve instead began treatment with the immunotherapy drugs Opdivo (nivolumab) and Yervoy (ipilimumab).

Opdivo and Yervoy were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for pleural mesothelioma in 2020, and have displayed improved survival times over chemotherapy alone.

The early months were often difficult, especially due to the severe pain Steve was still experiencing. But Steve leaned on his faith and the support of his family, and gradually, that pain began to fade.

“I felt a lot better because it’s really painful, especially starting off,” Steve said. “Even though I was getting the treatments, it took a while for this pain to subside. I was on pain pills every four hours. I missed a couple of them and it brought me to my knees crying, that’s how painful this is.”

Today, Steve says he hasn’t taken a pain pill in two years. And since he began taking Opdivo/Yervoy, his scans have shown a consistent trend of success. When he was diagnosed, Steve had a “baseball-sized” tumor on the outside of his lung, close enough to the heart that surgery was not possible. That tumor has shrunk to just five millimeters across.

Living a Full Life with Mesothelioma

For Steve, battling mesothelioma is no longer the full-time job that it used to be. He still receives immunotherapy treatment with Opdivo and Yervoy every three weeks, and receives regular scans, but he’s been off pain medication for years and takes only small amounts of hydroxyzine to help with minor side effects from his immunotherapy.

As Steve approaches three years since his diagnosis, the way his body has responded to Opdivo and Yervoy has been an unqualified success, and given him a new lease on life.

“I’m starting my third year, and (the tumor) has gotten smaller every time,” Steve said. “Every time I get a CAT scan it seems that it’s shrunk, and the ones in the liver and the adrenal gland have shrunk a little, but they’re staying put. You can barely see that old big one now.”

The effectiveness of his treatment, along with the support of his family and Steve’s own toughness and determination, has allowed him to continue living his life to the fullest. Steve has continued to be active in his local church, traveled across the country and overseas with his family, and continued being physically active.

When not traveling, you can still find Steve working in his yard or in a deer stand for hours on end, just like he would be before his mesothelioma diagnosis. He has no plans to ever change that, and credits his support system as the reason he’s been able to continue living the way he wants to.

Sources & Author

About the Writer, David Statman

David Statman is a Content Writer for Mesothelioma Guide. He received both his bachelor's and master's in journalism from West Virginia University, and has been in medical publishing since January 2022. He previously worked in sports journalism, primarily reporting on West Virginia sports for a number of publications.

He lives in Delaware with his wife, dog and two cats, and avidly competes as a professional wrestler in the Philadelphia area.