ERIC BERRY

The comeback of Kansas City Chiefs’ safety Eric Berry is not only my favourite sporting story of 2015, it is also a story so remarkable that its reach may stretch far beyond the confines of the NFL. On August 15 this year Berry returned to the field in K.C.’s preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals, a mere nine months after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a form of cancer which I myself was diagnosed with in 2011.

It was on December 8th, 2014 that Berry received his diagnosis. After complaining of chest pains following a game versus the Oakland Raiders, Berry was sent for MRI and CT scans which revealed a mass in his chest. The official diagnosis followed and Berry was placed on the non-football illness list. Berry informed his team mates in person before posting a statement on the Chiefs’ website which ended with the words ‘I’ll be back’, many must have wondered if he would be.

What lay ahead for the 2010 first round draft pick was a course of chemotherapy, a treatment so brutal on the human body that the drugs going into your veins, amongst other things, literally burn the hair off your body from within. Whilst laid up in bed Berry came to the realisation that it was not just physically but mentally that he was being tested, setting himself small achievable goals each day to keep him active would prevent Berry spending all day in bed where he describes that chemo made him feel “literally like your dying”.

Berry’s comeback is nothing short of incredible. The time between diagnosis and receiving the ‘all clear’ is not remarkable for a Hodgkin’s patient, I had nine months between receiving my diagnosis to being given the news that the cancer was gone. The physical toll however can be huge, as a ‘normal person’ returning to a ‘normal job’ it can be extremely difficult coping with the punishment that chemotherapy puts the body through, even four years after my last treatment my body still has never returned to normal.

The thing is that being a professional in the NFL is not a ‘normal job’ and without knowing the guy, Eric Berry, it would seem, is not a ‘normal person’. The physicality required to be a player at his level is far from normal and to return to that level after what his body has been put through is near super-human. The eloquence and honesty with which Berry speaks of his battle suggests he could continue to be an inspirational figure to those still battling cancer, if indeed he wishes to take on such a role.

Physically Berry has completed an almost impossible comeback but his battle may not be over yet. The mental toll of such a huge life changing event as a cancer diagnosis can take much longer to recover from. Berry has spoken of his strong family support system and they, as well as his Chiefs’ teammates, will have to be there for Berry going forward. The reality of what he has been through may not have hit home yet, for me it was long after I returned to work that the emotional effect of what I had been through really hit me.

It’s not the first time a professional athlete has overcome a cancer diagnosis and returned to their respective sport. Lance Armstrong inspired millions fighting the disease, his books and comeback provided hope to those who were in midst of their treatment, I know because I was one of them. Reading about how someone can come from near death to winning the ‘Tour De France’ served as huge inspiration for many but the good work Armstrong did has somehow been tainted by the doping revelations.

Whatever lies ahead on and off the football field for Eric Berry his story is one which can and will inspire others. In an age where the headlines are often filled with the most controversial sport stars Berry’s is a genuine feel good, inspirational story.