Dr. Bryant Lin, a Stanford Medicine professor, turned his stage 4 lung cancer diagnosis into a life lesson for his students and many others.
Sometimes when we face even small hardships, we feel like we have come to the end of our strength. A simple sickness or a personal setback can make us believe we have nothing more to give.
But God shows us that even when we feel weak, His power can shine through us. Dr. Lin’s story reminds us that it is not about how much time we have, but about how we choose to live it.
At just 50 years old, Dr. Lin was told he had terminal lung cancer. He had never smoked, but the disease had already spread to his brain, bones, and liver.
The survival rate was low, but instead of pulling back, he decided to teach a new course at Stanford called ‘From Diagnosis to Dialogue: A Doctor’s Real-Time Battle with Cancer.’
The course filled up fast, with students even sitting on the floor when seats ran out. Dr. Lin shared both the science of cancer and the real struggles of living with it.
He told his students, “This class is part of my letter, part of what I’m doing to give back to my community as I go through this.”
In the first lecture, Dr. Lin read a letter from a former patient who thanked him for treating him like his own father. That moment set the tone for the whole course.
His wife, Christine Chan, a manager at Google DeepMind, joined him for a session to share what it is like being a caregiver. She said, “We just have to go through it one day at a time,” a simple but powerful reminder that many of us need.
Dr. Lin stayed positive during the classes, making small jokes even as he spoke about hard subjects. When talking about possible drug resistance, he smiled and said, “Asking for a friend!”
His honesty and openness left a deep mark on his students. One freshman, Gideon Witchel, said the class helped him finally have an honest talk with his mother about her own past battle with cancer.
Dr. Lin also continued his work outside the classroom. He led a summit about non-smoker lung cancer and worked through the Stanford Center for Asian Health Research and Education.
He shared important facts that many people do not know, like how “Half of Asian American women diagnosed with lung cancer have never smoked.” He worked to raise awareness and called for better screening so that people at risk could catch the disease earlier.
During his final class, Dr. Lin gave his own version of Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech. He told his students, “For the past quarter, you’ve been hearing about the bad break I got. Yet today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.”
With tears in his eyes, he thanked his family, students, friends, and colleagues. Many students said they now wanted to work in cancer care because of him. Some even encouraged their own families to get screened for lung cancer after hearing his story.
Dr. Lin’s life reminds us that no matter how hard the journey, there is still room for purpose, for love, and for gratitude. He chose to spend his days teaching, helping, and pointing others to what really matters.
Our God is a miracle-worker. We often see His hands move in situations where doctors see no hope. We believe He can do the same for Dr. Lin.
We pray for Dr. Lin and his family, asking God to bless them with strength, comfort, and miracles.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
Video not working?
