Zac Yarbrough had his left hand draped over the top of his steering wheel. The tattoo just before his thumb — “Don’t give up. Don’t EVER give up.” — periodically caught his eye.
Last Thursday, he was headed to Charlottesville, Virginia, the city that had been his home for four years as he played his way to All-ACC accolades as an offensive lineman from 2001 to 2004 with the University of Virginia. Yarbrough’s return to Charlottesville was twofold: October 7 was Homecomings at UVA as the Cavaliers faced William & Mary, a game the Cavaliers dedicated to breast cancer awareness.
Yarbrough, 42, is a big dude that loves fishing, has a huge beard and got in the trenches on the football field. Still an active guy, he was swimming with his daughters when he discovered a small knot near his nipple. He thought nothing of it, but that small knot grew rapidly. So did his concern. In 2019, Yarbrough was diagnosed with cancer. Breast cancer.
Less than one percent of breast cancer diagnoses are male, and the rarity of the disease makes things more challenging. Even rarer, Yarbrough was just 38 at the time of diagnosis.
“When I first found my initial little tumor, I knew nothing about male breast cancer, so that’s why I let it kind of go on for a couple of months before going in and getting it checked,” Yarbrough told For the Win over a phone call during that drive to Charlottesville. “If I had known it existed at all, I would have gotten in a lot earlier and figured out if it was benign or cancerous or what.”
By the time his diagnosis came through, he was at Stage IV and had to act quickly. Within a six-day span, Yarbrough had his first mammogram, a radical mastectomy and 11 lymph nodes removed.
Immediately, support poured in for Yarbrough, who now lives in Jacksonville, Florida, as he started the difficult journey ahead. The first call he received was from his former coach at Virginia, Al Groh. Another one of those early calls was from former teammate Marques Hagans and his wife, Lauren.
Lauren — along with Marques and their two sons — ended up being a huge support system for Yarbrough through this treatment journey as she dealt with her own battle against breast cancer in late 2018 and into 2019.
“Marques and I are honored to love and support Zac in his relentless fight against breast cancer. He was a selfless and protective teammate to Marques and has been an incredible friend to both of us,” Lauren told FTW via text message. “His fighting spirit is both contagious and inspiring. We are so proud of his example and grateful for his willingness to spread awareness about a very tough disease.”
Yarbrough said he realized he could sit around and feel sorry for himself, or he could do something productive. Soon after his diagnosis, Yarbrough was watching the ESPYs when he found himself sucked into the iconic speech from former N.C. State men’s basketball coach Jim Valvano.
He was familiar with Jim Valvano’s 1993 speech, but hearing it this time hit a little closer to home. This new connection with the speech inspired the tattoo on his left hand, now serving as a daily reminder in his battle.
“I had always heard his speech before, but I never really listened to it,” Yarbrough explained. “That really just kind of changed my mindset and attitude of his perspective of life, his approach every single day, trying to maximize every single opportunity.”
This new connection with the speech is what led to that tattoo on his left hand that now serves as a daily reminder in his battle.
And Yarbrough has been a man of his word. Despite getting chemotherapy every 21 days as part of his current treatment, Yarbrough has stayed positive. He’s worked with the V Foundation to share his story and attempt to reach more men about the very real risks that exist.
Part of that journey took him back to his alma mater during the 2022 football season, speaking to the team at the behest of Virginia head coach Tony Elliott.
“He’s part of the brotherhood,” Elliott said from the podium following the Cavaliers’ win on Saturday. “It’s a great opportunity for him to pour into this generation by being present, having a chance to address them and speak. He’s got a unique story, [one] that can really open up some people’s eyes and give people a different perspective on breast cancer. I know it’s very rare to have it in males but he’s one of the survivors dealing with it.”
Players like defensive back Coen King took Yarbrough’s visit to heart last year as someone whose been directly affected by the disease.
“What I most remember about [Yarbrough’s 2022 talk] is you really don’t meet a lot of males — or personally I haven’t met many — that are affected by breast cancer. I just remember he was so lively. He had a great energy that he brought,” King recalled on Saturday.
“My mom was affected by it back in 2016. It just goes hand-in-hand how I feel about it, how I feel about him, and I’m glad he was able to talk to us.”
Yarbrough recently received good news in his treatment, but he has a long way to go. He never wanted to be in this position — and some days he feels tired just like anyone else — but that’s when he can take a quick glance at his left hand.
“We’ve all been affected by it one way or another whether it’s personally, a family member, a friend. We all know somebody. So having that community together or getting a call from other people fighting cancer right now is huge,” Yarbrough explains.
“Helping each other through those battles and comparing side effects, things like that, I think goes a long way. So the bigger the community the better.”