The moment Justin Beal stepped into the treatment center yesterday morning, something shifted. It wasn’t just another appointment. It wasn’t just another test. It wasn’t even the beginning of cancer treatment.

It was the start of the second half of his fight — a half that will demand everything he has left.

For Justin, a police investigator at The University of Alabama, the battle began months ago. OnSeptember 11th, doctors made a discovery that changed everything: cancer had returned, and this time, it was hiding in the sinus cavity. A place difficult to reach. A place full of risk. A place that rarely holds good news.

But Justin didn’t flinch.

He underwent major reconstructive surgery, endured pain that few witness, and pushed through recovery with a determination that startled even his closest friends. He fought the first half of his battle in operating rooms and hospital beds — one surgery, one setback, one breath at a time.

Now the second half begins.

And this part may be even harder.

Fifty Rounds. Five Weeks. Two Times a Day.

Radiation isn’t gentle.
It isn’t predictable.
And for Justin, it won’t be quick.

Beginning yesterday, he will undergo 50 individual radiation treatments, spread across two sessions every weekday, one at 8:00 a.m. and the other at 2:30 p.m. for five straight weeks.

Fifty trips.
Fifty blasts of targeted radiation.
Fifty reminders that healing often feels like breaking before it becomes whole.

His wife Christina explained it plainly — not dramatically, not emotionally, but honestly:

“Justin begins the fight of his life. After receiving his diagnosis, he is now starting an intensive, five-week course of radiation therapy. This is a crucial step towards healing, but the treatment schedule is grueling and presents significant challenges to his daily life and his family’s finances.”

And the truth behind her words hits hard.

Because this isn’t just a medical journey.
It is a financial one.
A physical one.
An emotional one.
A family one.

Justin isn’t fighting alone — but he is fighting something that threatens every corner of his life.

Far From Home, But Not Alone

Justin and Christina are staying at Hope Lodge in Birmingham — a sanctuary created by the American Cancer Society for patients who must travel far from home for treatment. Their home is in Northport, AL, hours away. Too far for daily commuting. Too far for comfort. Too far from normal life.

Especially when a family is already stretched thin.

One of their daughters has special needs.
Their routines have been uprooted.
Their home rhythms disrupted.
Their finances strained by travel, meals, time away from work, and the constant pressure of staying afloat while cancer demands its own unrelenting schedule.

Yet, through everything, something shines just as fiercely as Justin’s determination:

The love around him.

Family.
Friends.
Coworkers.
Neighbors.
People who know him.
People who don’t.
People who simply heard the story of a man who refuses to quit.

Christina sees it every day, and she puts it into words better than anyone else:

“We are standing with Justin two rounds at a time… until the fight is won.”

A Man Built for the Battle

Cancer is cruel.
Cancer is heavy.
Cancer does not care about the life you’ve built, the dreams you carry, or the people who need you.

But Justin is not an ordinary patient.

As an investigator, he spent years running toward chaos while others ran away.
He learned how to examine, analyze, push forward, and stay focused when everything feels out of control.
He learned how to move through fear with purpose.
He learned how to fight for truth and safety — even when it was hard.

And now?
He’s fighting for his own life with the same relentless commitment he once used to protect others.

His doctors see it.
His family sees it.
His community sees it.

Justin Beal is tired — but he is not beaten.

Radiation: The War No One Sees

Radiation therapy looks peaceful from the outside.
A quiet room.
A machine humming.
A patient lying still.

But beneath the surface, it is a war.

It attacks healthy cells along with the cancerous ones.
It causes burns, exhaustion, nausea, headaches, swallowing issues, sinus pain, and debilitating fatigue.
It wears down the mind as much as the body.

For Justin, the sinus cavity location makes the experience even more painful and risky.

He will taste metal.
He will feel heat.
He will lose strength before he gains any back.
He will wake up each day knowing he must go through it again — twice.

And still, he will show up.

Because this is the part of the journey where showing up is everything.

A Family Holding the Line

Christina has stood beside her husband through surgery, recovery, travel, exhaustion, and fear.
Now she stands beside him through the most intense phase yet.

They eat simple meals.
They sleep in unfamiliar rooms.
They manage treatments, schedules, appointments, and responsibilities from miles away.
They hold onto hope tightly, because hope is the only currency cancer cannot drain.

Their daughters continue to be their motivation — the reason Justin fights as fiercely as he does.

Every beam of radiation is a painful step toward one goal:

Survival.

Not survival for himself.
But survival for them.

The Second Half Has Just Begun

The first half of the battle tested Justin’s body.
The second half will test everything else.

His strength.
His discipline.
His endurance.
His spirit.
His patience.
His faith.

This is the part of the journey that strips a man down to his core and asks him one question:

How badly do you want to live?

Justin has already answered.

In the operating room.
On the treatment table.
In every early morning appointment.
In every evening when he forces himself to stay focused.
In every tired breath.
In every moment he tells himself he can do one more round.

He wants to live.
He wants to win.
He wants to close out this fight the way he has closed out every fight before:

Not quietly — but triumphantly.

Until the Fight Is Won

Christina said it best:

“We are standing with Justin two rounds at a time… until the fight is won.”

And that is exactly what they will do.

One day at a time.
One appointment at a time.
One radiation beam at a time.
One whispered prayer at a time.

Because the second half of his journey has begun.

And Justin Beal — husband, father, investigator, fighter — is stepping into it with the determination of someone who refuses to lose.

He won the first half.

Now he is ready to win the rest.