Frankie Banali is known by most as the drummer of the popular 80’s band Quiet Riot. He played drums in the band for over 35 years. Most notably on their monitor hits “Cum on feel the noize” and “Metal Health” (Bang your head) and on hits by other artists such as Billy Idol and WASP. 

On April 17th, 2019, he was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer and given six months to live. 

Frankie had no prior symptoms and was given a clean health bill at his last physical two months prior. He sought out treatments and cures, but by that time, it had metastasized to his liver and was inoperable. After the news, he and his loved ones asked why he was not diagnosed when it was treatable. They were stunned to learn that not only was there no test for pancreatic cancer and no symptoms, but that his doctors would not have been able to order scans to check him for this despite knowing his father had passed away from pancreatic cancer. Frankie had diligently kept up with his checkups and assumed his doctors could monitor his ongoing health status. It came as quite a shock to be told that nothing in his checkups would ever be able to find cancer at an early stage. His doctors had simply not felt the need to explain that. He felt cheated. 

Since his passing, his widow Regina has asked all the whys and what-ifs and found that the only thing that could have saved Frankie is if they had known that it’s up to all of us to be our own health advocates. Fortunately, there are commercially available tools that we can use to monitor our own health. After all, we are the ones who care the most about our health. Had he known, Frankie would have taken these steps and would likely be here today.

1 in 2 people will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime. However, only four types of cancers are generally recommended for regular screening. Yet only 14% of diagnosed cancers are detected by those screenings. The other 86% are either not caught by screening or don’t have screening tests. However, catching cancers at stage 1 can increase the chance of survival.

Our mission at the Frankie Banali Foundation is to raise awareness about the steps we can all take to live longer, healthier lives and to cover the costs for people with financial hardships to access these tools. 

That’s why we partnered with Prenuvo to provide a coupon code, “Frankie,” to receive $300 off a scan. The foundation will also be able to cover the cost entirely for some applicants who cannot afford it. With Prenuvo, patients can be alerted to conditions before symptoms appear – and when the possibility of a cure is highest.

Please take every step possible to monitor your health for the sake of your life and those you love. Please consider donating to the Frankie Banali Foundation to help others save their own lives.