On an emotional night, Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry returned to the playing field on Saturday following his battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Berry is one of the more recent sports figures to return to his profession following the defeat of cancer, but is certainly not the only one.
Indianapolis Chiefs head coach Chuck Pagano also battled cancer a short time ago. Pagano underwent chemotherapy treatment to battle leukemia for six months before returning to the sidelines. Since his return, Pagano has led his teams to consecutive Division titles, as well as an AFC Conference Title Game appearance.
Another notable athlete to defeat cancer is current Chicago Cubs pitcher Jon Lester. At the young age of 22, Lester was diagnosed with Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma. This caused him to miss the first part of the 2007 MLB regular season, but he was able to return in time to pitch the Boston Red Sox to a Game 4 World Series victory. Also following his battle with cancer, Lester pitched a no-hitter against the Kansas City Royals in 2008.
The next sports icon on the list comes from the NHL. Mario Lemieux was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1993 during the prime of his career, a year in which he had hopes on breaking Wayne Gretzky's record for most goals scored in a single season. However, he was forced to miss two months of regular season play for chemotherapy treatment. Despite his setbacks, he returned quickly and in full force, helping his Pittsburgh Penguins win seventeen consecutive games. Not only that, Lemieux's performance was so strong that he was honored with the Hart Trophy, the award given to the NHL's Most Valuable Player.
Arguably the most notable cancer survivor to return to his sport is cyclist Lance Armstrong. Armstrong dropped out of the 1996 Tour de France to illness, ultimately learning that he had brain, lung, and testicular cancer. Despite being given a less than forty percent chance to live, Armstrong battled through chemotherapy treatment to win seven consecutive Tour de France titles. Though those titles were stripped due to a scandal, the impact on the world that Armstrong made is one that is hard to top. Armstrong founded the LIVESTRONG foundation, an organization that has raised nearly half a billion dollars for cancer research and helped treat many individuals battling cancer.
Many athletes experience major setbacks on their paths to success, and cancer is certainly among the greatest for a handful of those athletes. Despite the difficulties and hardships that the disease causes, the sports world has raised a tremendous amount of awareness and generated millions of dollars in support through various foundations to fight this disease.
ESPN established the V Foundation in honor of college basketball icon Jim Valvano. Valvano led his team to a national championship in 1983, but died ten years later following an emotional speech at ESPN's ESPY Awards upon acceptance of the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage.
To donate to the V Foundation, please click here.
To donate to the LIVESTRONG Foundation, please click here.
