Tony Hawk Talks Lung Cancer Awareness, Wanting to 'Fly'

Skateboarding icon Tony Hawk's dad, Frank Hawk, bought him his first couple of pro-grade skateboards at a swap meet. Hawk's dad was a lieutenant commander in the Navy and a World War II pilot. A gruff personality, he showed love through "support," Hawk recalls.

Tragically, his dad was diagnosed with lung cancer at age 72. He only lasted six months from diagnosis to his 1995 death, Hawk says. He didn't live long enough to meet most of Tony Hawk's children or Tony Hawk's grandchild.

"He caught it very late," says Hawk, who sat down for a wide-ranging Zoom interview with Men's Journal. In the November 14 interview, Hawk also spoke about his own future, the video game that features him, and "wanting to fly."

Hawk says that he was drawn to skateboarding after going to the local skatepark because he "literally saw people flying. And I wanted to fly."

• His father's tragic death is why the legendary skateboarder has launched a new campaign focused on men's health, urging men (and women) to get tested for cancer. That's because the prognosis is so much better if you catch it early and, as Hawk learned from his dad's own tragedy, lung cancer can go "undetected."

• Hawk is partnering with a “multi-cancer early detection test” called Cancerguard. A fact sheet explains that Cancerguard “is a simple blood test that screens for multiple cancer types simultaneously, including some of the most aggressive, often ‘silent’ cancers.”
• Cancerguard tests for more than 50 cancer types and subtypes, according to Hawk. "It's exciting to me because I want to find out," says Hawk. "They do a blood draw. They come to your house." If a person gets a positive result, they should consult with their physician. "Nearly 70 percent of all cancer cases and deaths in the U.S. occur with no recommended screening," Hawk says.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death, claiming more than 600,000 lives annually, yet screening is only recommended for four cancer types, the fact sheet says. Cancerguard is from the makers of the Cologuard test.

Tony Hawk's Dad Was Not 'High Risk' for Lung Cancer

Hawk's father wasn't a smoker, and he didn't have any significant symptoms, other than a cough that he treated with "stronger cough medicines for the better part of a year." According to Hawk, his dad was "not high risk." That's the biggest reason Hawk is using his fame to encourage cancer awareness, he says.

"My dad only got to meet one of my children," said Hawk. "I have four biological children."

He described Cancerguard as a "blood draw" that "detects signals" that warn of cancer risk. "It's more meant to be complementary, not to replace existing routine screening," he said.

Hawk said there is a "stigma that all lung cancer is from smoking, but that's not true." He said it was "so awful" to watch his father deteriorate.

"He passed away at home, and we had to see him wither away. It was terrible."

Tony Hawk's Dad Showed 'Love Through Support' in an Era When Parents Weren't as Accepting of Skateboarding

Hawk's dad was 45 when he was born. "I wasn't planned," he says, calling his father "a child of the depression. He had a pretty rough upbringing. He joined the Navy right out of high school."

He said his dad was a pilot in World War II who "saw his fair share of trauma." He was "very supportive of his kids because he didn't have the support of his own parents," but he describes his dad as "gruff" and "not the warmest" personality.

Hawk said he "had to sort of accept that he was showing his love through his support."

According to Hawk, his father was supportive of his skateboarding, which was unique because parents in the 1970s and 1980s didn't generally "want their kids skating."

"We weren't buying very many new things," he added, so the swap-meet skateboards were "fine with me." He said they were pro-quality but didn't have fancy graphics.

As for the future, he is bringing back Hawk shoes and starting a safety line with a helmet. There is nothing in the works regarding another video game.

He remembers one time when he decided to learn to skimboard in the early 1980s. He saved money from his paper route to buy a skim board, but none of the shops in San Diego, where he grew up, had professional-quality skim boards. His dad drove him to Los Angeles to get one.

"He would go out of his way," he says.

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