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'I Wish I Would Have Taken A Look At This Sooner": North Texas Man Fighting Breast Cancer

McKINNEY, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - A McKinney man's world was flipped upside down when he was diagnosed with breast cancer two months ago.

"Since I was 40, I've been going to the doctor, getting prostate and colon cancer screenings. Never once did I think about getting breast cancer," said 60-year-old Galen Johnson.

However, that became his reality.

Galen Johnson
Galen Johnson (credit: Medical City Health)

It all started last December, when Johnson thought he was having a heart attack after feeling severe chest pains.

But after testing in April, health specialists told him he had stage 3 breast cancer.

A month later, he had a double mastectomy.

Johnson is sharing his story to bring awareness to men's breast cancer for Men's Health Month, an annual observance aimed at raising awareness of preventable health problems and encouraging early detection and treatment of disease, Medical City McKinney said in a news release.

Looking back, Johnson says he has one regret.

"I wish I would have taken a look at this sooner than later," said Johnson. "Since I've been diagnosed, they've ran genetic markers on me and found out that this is genetic and it's not environmental."

While Johnson still has some cancer in his body, he's hopeful his health will be restored.

"I'm young. Even though I'm 60, I'm still young," Johnson said. "I still got a life in a lot of things I want to do. A big old bucket list I have to cross up before I call it quits!"

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