A Tulsa hero who has devoted his life fighting for others is now fighting for his own life.
Cpl. Dennis Miller with the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office is taking a leave from his job to focus on his own battle with stage four breast breast cancer.
It was the news most men never expect to hear. The diagnosis of a deadly cancer that only affects about 1 in 1,000 men.
But Cpl. Miller said his fight is far from over.
"Oh crap," Miller said. "I mean that is the last thing i would have expected."
It was a shocking diagnosis for one of Tulsa's finest.
"When they said you have breast cancer it was like really? Are you serious, and he said yeah"
It was stage four breast cancer and devastating news for the corporal and those who love him.
"He might be gruff on the outside when he needs to be but he's the most lovable and kind and generous man ever," Miller's wife said.
Cpl. Miller refuses to become a statistic and his record proves he's fearless. He was honored for bravery in 2012 after helping stop a gunman at the courthouse. Today he's fighting a different fight.
"I've always been a fighter and I'll never give up," Miller said. "My faith and my family will carry me through all of this."
In his mother-in-law, Miller's seen first hand what cancer can do.
"Christmas Eve last year she was diagnosed with brain cancer and we took care of her until she died," Miller said.
But he does the best he can to lift his spirits. Miller's secret weapon -- his sense of humor.
He jokes about his infamous mustache.
"It's not so infamous anymore," he joked, and the affects of chemotherapy, "Even though I don't have any hair right now... see."
Jokes aside, his message is clear: He'll fight the good fight, while spreading awareness of his rare diagnosis.
"And for men, you laugh off breast cancer but it's not a laughing matter," Miller said.
He encourages all men to get regular check-ups and take care of their body.
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