DENVER -- Michael DiZoglio has a dog to thank for saving his life.

CBS Denver reports DiZoglio's father's dog — a Husky named Mickey — loves when he comes over.

"One time he jumped on me from the right and I didn't feel any pain, and I thought it should have hurt," he said.

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DiZoglio says he thought the lack of sensation was worrisome. So he underwent a series of testing. And on his 28th birthday, his doctors informed him that he had testicular cancer.

"I didn't cry, laugh, I didn't overreact," he said. "I felt dumbfounded. I never anticipated that kind of news."

The treatment hasn't been easy, but DiZoglio says he began to think positively after receiving the diagnosis.

"The best thing in my life is that I had testicular cancer," he said. "What if it had been my spleen or liver? I wouldn't have known."

DiZoglio has been receiving chemotherapy treatments since August. He's taken a break from work due to the difficulty of his therapy.

An operation successfully removed a tumor, but it's an aggressive type, known as embryonal carcinoma.

Unfortuantely, a scan detected the cancer spread to his lungs, which showed a series of spots.

DiZoglio says he is hopeful that good news could come from a scan scheduled for early December — his chemotherapy could potentially be over at that time.

Catching his cancer early was key. DiZoglio says he thinks it's important to pay attention to what might be wrong with your body.

"Someone's looking out for me through the dog," he said. "I felt like something's going into place to protect me."