Our pa**ions in life often dictate our reasons for living, our reasons for dying, and undeniably, our reasons for fighting. “60 minutes” did a segment on the inspiring story of Mark Herzlich and his fight to live his NFL dreams. The All-American from Boston College was well on his way to becoming a top NFL draft pick during his college career until he experienced the biggest “hit” of his life. In 2009, Herzlich started having severe leg pain that was eventually diagnosed as Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer seen in young adults. This cancer is so rare that most doctors (other than bone cancer specialists) have only seen it on multiple choice board exam questions in medical school. Herzlich had a real-life multiple choice test when his doctors basically asked him to choose between living and playing football. Mark chose all of the above. He pa**ed with flying colors.
Ewing's sarcoma (no relation to the great Patrick Ewing of the NY Knicks) is a genetic bone cancer. It occurs when pieces of two chromosomes (the apps of information in our cells that we downloaded from our parents) somehow switch with each other and create a code to form cancer. If the tumor is found early and doesn't spread to other parts of the body, patients usually do just fine long-term. The typical treatment course is 8-12 weeks of chemotherapy, followed by surgery to remove the cancer, and then another 6-12 months of chemo. This fight against bone cancer took Herzlich off the football field for the entire 2009 season at BC. After removing the part of the femur (thigh bone) with the cancer, doctors gave Mark the option of replacing the bone with a “graft” (in this case, a piece of bone from a cadaver) or getting a titanium rod placed. Mark chose the rod because it gave him the best shot at playing football without worrying as much about breaking his leg on the field.
Mark Herzlich's story is inspiring on many levels. It is a tale of pa**ion, perseverance, and patience. Herzlich beat his cancer and silenced the critics that told him he would never play football again, let alone play in the NFL. Goosebumps. It's almost poetic that he ended up on the New York Giants, a team with a history of coming back from adversity and winning against all odds.
Mark's story reminds us that we should all have something worth living, dying, and fighting for in our lives. We give Mark Herzlich an Injury Duty salute and wish him all the best on and off the field.
- Rish Kumar @injurydutyrish