At age 67, Stephen Turkovich has no plans to slow down.

Stephen and his wife, Beate, are triathlon junkies. Since 1994, they've been biking, swimming, and running around the world, including Canada, France, Germany, Hawaii, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain. They've even finished full Ironman races – 2.4 miles of swimming, immediately followed by a dizzying 112-mile bike ride and finishing with a 26.2-mile marathon run. "My wife and I are quite active considering our age," says Stephen.
 
For the first time this summer, Stephen and Beate planned a full Ironman race with their youngest daughter, Lee. They had all been training for nearly two years with good progress.

That is until Stephen found something unusual. "When I put on deodorant after a shower, I raised my arm up and there was a lump," he says. "Then I raised my arm all the way overhead, and it looked as big as a lacrosse ball."

He went in to see his primary care provider the following Monday. By Thursday, he had a quick surgery to see what type of cells they were. On April Fool's Day, of all days, Stephen got the bad news: It was cancer. 

"I wasn't going to let it affect my bubbly and effervescent outlook on life," says Stephen. 

"The first time we met, he asked if he could continue doing the Ironman races," says oncologist Julie Vose, MD, one of Stephen's doctors. "Most people wouldn't be able to do triathlons normally, let alone during chemotherapy where you're tired and anemic. But Stephen just inspired me 

Stephen had six cycles of chemotherapy plus immunotherapy. During the treatments, his family would wear "Team Turk" T-shirts to show their support. 

"My wife is a tremendous source of strength and support, as well as my kids and grandkids," says Stephen. "I was extremely fortunate and felt so blessed. And everyone with Nebraska Medicine was top-notch, from floor to ceiling – Dr. Vose, my case manager Brad, the entire staff.

They're all polite, professional and courteous."

And in June, Stephen, Beate and Lee competed in the Des Moines Ironman. Stephen completed the first two legs – the swim and bike ride – then started the marathon. After running eight of the 26.2 miles, Stephen was "not on fumes, but on vapors." Knowing it wasn't safe to keep

going, Stephen cheered on Beate and Lee as they ran the marathon.

This is also Stephen's third year of cycling to raise money for pediatric cancer. He's aiming to ride 1,000 miles in September alone. "Of course, chemo decimated my stamina and endurance," he says. "But I'm aiming to go out tomorrow and ride 50 miles."

"Stephen is an inspiration to other patients," says Dr. Vose. "A healthy lifestyle before and during treatment can really help people going through cancer. If they can continue to do the normal things they like to do and not let cancer slow them down, that's great."

Stephen and his family are waiting to see if the cancer is in remission. But in the meantime, they have big plans. "We're doing a half Ironman in Turkey in November," says Stephen. "And then next June, I'll do a full Ironman in Austria."

And Team Turk will be there to cheer him on every step of the way.