Every Father's Day, he participated in a 5K walk and run that helps raise awareness and money for research to fight the cancer.
Gary's wish was to one day be able to sleep-in on Father's Day because that would mean we would have a cure or a way to prevent prostate cancer.
This weekend, about 5-thousand wil take part in the Gary Papa run, and that includes a Bucks county survivor now urging others to take part.
Two years ago, vince market was focused on his career and family, until a routine checkup showed results on his PSA blood test were higher than usual.
After a physical exam, and two biopsies, Vince got shocking news.
"About 20% of my prostate was cancerous," Vince told us. "Literally, my whole life came to a stop."
His father had prostate cancer, but at the age of 75, not at 47, like Vince.
Right away, he learned as much as he could about the disease, and treatment options.
He chose robot-assisted surgery, and is happy he did.
"I was operated on a Monday at noon. It was a 5-hour operation. I was home by 11 o-clock the next morning," he said.
With friends and family, he recovered at the shore, and within a month, was walking 5 or 6 miles a day.
He also got more support from fellow survivors in his church.
"The guys would come up to me in the parking lot, and say, hey, I heard you had an issue. I gotta talk to you, because I had the same issue," he notes.
They also urged him to take part in the Gary Papa Run.
Gary started participating in the event in 2003 after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
It raises awareness, and money for research.
Last year, Vince ran with his family.
This year, now free of cancer for 2 years, he run with more than a dozen high school pals.
"Our team is called the Fighting Falcons. It's actually a tribute to North Catholic High School, I'm an alum, and it closed a few years ago," Vince said.
He said the men look forward to the time together, and to raising awareness of prostate cancer.
"When I got diagnosed, a couple of my friends went right out and got tested, because they said if it can happen to Vince, it can happen to anybody," he says.
Many formal and informal teams plan to take part Sunday morning in the race, including a team from Action News.
And if you would like to join us, there is still time to sign up. Go to 2012 Gary Papa Run or come to the Art Museum steps between 7 & 8 AM Sunday morning.
