I recently joined Dave Alexander on Miami Valley View, an iHeartMedia Dayton public-service program, for one of the most personal conversations I have shared publicly.

During the interview, we discussed my multiple myeloma diagnosis, cancer treatment, mental health, fatherhood, the custody battle I faced while undergoing treatment and the experiences that inspired my memoir, Rise Anyway: A Memoir of Survival, Fatherhood, and Becoming.

[LISTEN TO THE OFFICIAL EPISODE ON iHEART]

A cancer diagnosis in the middle of an already difficult fight

For years, I dealt with exhaustion, shortness of breath and the feeling that something was wrong with my body. A blood test eventually showed that my hemoglobin had fallen dangerously low, leading to blood transfusions and the search for the underlying cause.

That search ultimately led to a diagnosis of multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.

Treatment included chemotherapy, frequent appointments, medications and eventually a stem-cell transplant. I later achieved a form of remission, although multiple myeloma remains something I continue to live with and monitor.

At the same time, I was also fighting a custody battle involving my daughter.

Those two parts of my life could not be separated. I was trying to protect my health, remain present as a father and prepare for an uncertain future—all at once.

My greatest fear was not being there for my daughter

When I first received the diagnosis, my thoughts immediately went to my daughter.

I was afraid of the treatment and of what the diagnosis could mean for my life, but my greatest fear was that I might not be there to raise her.

That fear also became one of my strongest reasons to continue fighting.

Fatherhood gave the struggle a purpose beyond my own survival. I wanted to remain present, protect my relationship with my daughter and give her the stability she deserved.

In the interview, I explain how that responsibility shaped the way I approached cancer treatment, the custody process and the emotional weight of carrying both battles at the same time.

Mental health was part of my story before cancer

My struggles with anxiety and depression did not begin with my cancer diagnosis.

They started years earlier, reaching back to my teenage years. Receiving a cancer diagnosis added another emotional burden, but it did not create the mental-health challenges that were already part of my life.

During the conversation, Dave and I also discussed the pressure many men feel to hide anxiety, fear and emotional pain. Too often, speaking openly about those experiences is treated as weakness when it should be recognized as honesty.

That is one reason I believe these conversations matter.

Why I wrote Rise Anyway

I did not write Rise Anyway while these events were happening. I wrote it later, after gaining enough distance to begin looking back at everything I had lived through.

The writing process forced me to revisit memories I normally avoided thinking about. It was emotionally difficult, but I believed sharing the story could help someone else feel less alone.

The book is not about pretending adversity disappears or claiming that every struggle ends neatly.

It is about continuing to move forward while fear, uncertainty and pain are still present. It is about the strength required to remain a father, advocate for yourself, protect your mental health and keep building a life when several parts of that life appear to be falling apart.

That is what Rise Anyway means to me.

Watch or listen to the full Miami Valley View interview

Listen through the official iHeart episode page:
Brice Davis on Miami Valley View

The official iHeart page lists the interview as a 15-minute episode of Miami Valley View and includes the complete audio conversation.

About Rise Anyway

Rise Anyway: A Memoir of Survival, Fatherhood, and Becoming tells the story of living through multiple myeloma, cancer treatment, mental-health struggles and a custody battle while trying to remain present for my daughter.

It is a story about survival, but more importantly, it is about the fight to keep becoming the person—and the father—I wanted to be.

Learn more about the book and my story at TheBriceDavis.com.