Pulitzer-Winning Photographer Back Behind the Camera After Cancer Battle
When he got his cancer diagnosis, Los Angeles-based photojournalist David Swanson vowed, “I will get through this.”
Indeed, Swanson has returned to the field, documenting news for leading media outlets.
“I’m back,” he says. “I have hope and love and a lot of family and friends’ support.”
Swanson underwent two months of radiation and chemotherapy. Since late April, he has covered the film premiere of “Lord of the Flies,” actress Jane Fonda endorsing Tom Steyer for governor of California, a gubernatorial debate, anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles, and wildfires.
On November 14, 2025, Swanson was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. He lost 60 pounds during treatment. Swanson is scheduled to undergo an enhanced imaging scan in early June to determine if he is cancer-free.
“I’ve been getting plenty of hugs,” he says, referring to his return to work in southern California, where Swanson is a familiar figure among journalists, especially at wildfires.
A versatile pro, Swanson’s October 28, 2025, photo of NASA’s experimental supersonic aircraft taking off in Palmdale, California, was featured in Reuters ’ global Pictures of the Week.
From York, Pennsylvania, Swanson moved to Los Angeles in 2019 after a 33-year career at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Swanson was on The Inquirer team that won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its series on violence in city schools.
His award-winning career includes covering global conflicts, Hurricane Katrina, the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Ground Zero after the attacks on September 11, 2001, the trial of Jerry Sandusky and related protests at Penn State University, and California wildfires.
Swanson was embedded with the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan in 2003 and the U.S. Marines in Iraq in 2004, when he was shot in the arm. His work was honored by World Press Photo.
“Whether this (cancer) is a byproduct of Ground Zero, burn pits in Iraq, these California wildfires or smoking Parliament Lights forever, I can’t look back,” he told the York (PA) Daily Record late last year. “I will get through this.”
Prior to his cancer diagnosis, Swanson launched a podcast series chronicling his well-traveled, sometimes dangerous career: “Just the Photographer.” Part of his motivation for producing these podcasts was to create an audio record of his work, in his voice, for his daughter.
After cancer treatment, what about the irony of Swanson returning to smoky conditions, such as covering the Sandy Fire in Simi Valley, California, on May 18)?
“I have a mask,” Swanson said calmly.
Image credits: Photos courtesy of David Swanson
About the author: Ken Klein lives in Silver Spring, Maryland; he is retired after a career in politics, lobbying, and media including The Associated Press and Gannett in Florida. Klein is an alumnus of Ohio University and a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of the Scripps College of Communication. Professionally, he has worked for Fort Myers News-Press (Gannett), The Associated Press (Tallahassee), Senator Bob Graham, and the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA).