Dolphins Staffer Beats Cancer Twice, Rides 39 Miles Cancer-Free

When Brady Engel crosses the finish line at this year's Dolphins Cancer Challenge on February 28th, he'll be celebrating more than just completing a 39-mile bike ride. He'll be celebrating being cancer-free after beating B-Cell Lymphoma twice before his 30th birthday.

Engel joined the Miami Dolphins as Director of Business Solutions in 2020, fresh out of college and working remotely from California during COVID. Just months into his dream job, he noticed a tennis ball-sized lump on his neck.

Doctors took nearly a year to diagnose what turned out to be B-Cell Lymphoma. Even from across the country, Engel says his Dolphins coworkers rallied around him with support and encouragement.

When he finally moved to South Florida after treatment, the Dolphins Cancer Challenge became his way to meet the people who'd supported him through his toughest months. "Meeting everyone who had supported me for the first year and a half of my tenure with the Dolphins, having never met them, was one of the most special things that I've ever experienced," Engel said.

In late 2024, the lump returned. This time, Engel received treatment at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, the very facility that benefits from the Dolphins Cancer Challenge he'd grown to love.

He underwent a stem cell transplant in January 2025 and walked a 5K at the challenge just three weeks after leaving the hospital. "Coming out of it having been in the hospital 3 weeks prior to the event was truly magical," he recalled.

Now, recent scans show Engel is cancer-free again. This year marks his sixth Dolphins Cancer Challenge, and he's upgrading from walking to biking 39 miles.

The Ripple Effect

The Dolphins Cancer Challenge has raised nearly $100 million for cancer research at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center since its inception. This year's event aims to push that total over the milestone mark.

Engel's story shows how the Dolphins' "One Team, One Fight" motto extends beyond football. His girlfriend, currently in medical school, will also participate by providing skin cancer screenings at the event.

The challenge brings together riders, runners, and walkers who've all been touched by cancer in different ways. For Engel, it represents both the finish line of his treatment journey and the starting line of his cancer-free life.

This month, Engel will ride those 39 miles knowing that every pedal stroke supports the research center that helped save his life twice.