Introducing Robin Cole

Alicia Zhou
Color
Published in
2 min readSep 4, 2018

Robin Cole is an NFL legend. As a Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker from 1977–1987, he was part of the famous Steel Curtain defense that helped the team win four Super Bowls in six seasons. Robin himself is a two-time Super Bowl champion (XIII and XIV).

He’s also a prostate cancer survivor. I first met Robin at a urology retreat in Toronto. He sat across from me during a roundtable discussion on the importance of raising awareness for prostate cancer genetics among men. He was animated, passionate, and personal: I learned that he came from a big family of ten children total, eight boys. I learned that all eight of those boys, including Robin, had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. I learned that Robin’s father, Obediah, had passed away from prostate cancer. I learned that, despite all of this, prostate cancer remains a difficult subject to talk about for some of his brothers.

And of course, I learned that all of this is why Robin has become such a strong advocate for genetic testing and prostate cancer awareness. Robin’s non-profit foundation, the Robin Cole Foundation, promotes prostate cancer education, awareness, research and treatment. Through it, Robin shares his personal story, his family’s story, and educates the general public about the importance of genetic testing and regular screening for prostate cancer.

Robin Cole is a legend, a prostate cancer survivor, and an increasingly vocal health advocate. But most importantly to me, Robin Cole is my friend. So I’m honored and delighted to share this video that we worked on together to raise awareness for prostate cancer and genetic testing around the world.

--

--

Alicia Zhou
Color
Writer for

Ph.D. in Cancer Biology, Chief Science Officer at Color