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“I Wish I Had Better News to Share,” Says Jason Myrtetus in Cancer Update
Published:
Jason gave an update on his cancer battle:
Here’s the full note:
“I wish I had better news to share regarding my health and battle with Colorectal Cancer. About 2 weeks ago I had an appt with my oncologist after an updated CHEST CT Scan the Friday prior and blood work. The Chest CT scan showed some continuing growth in the lung nodules, still minimal but concerning. Especially when combined with my rising levels of CEA (CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN) which is a blood marker that is produced when your body is fighting cancer. For some it is more reliable than others as has been the case for me. Normal levels are between 0-4.7 GM/mL. At diagnosis in December 2024 my CEA level was 28. After chemo 4.9, after oral chemo and radiation 3.9 and in October through January 3.5 when I was NED (No Evidence of Disease).
Late January, I started feeling a bit off and having a lot more fatigue and when I was tested the CEA was 13 prompting a procedure when they found the recurrence which led to my LAR resection surgery and they removed 10 Inches of my colon and have been living with a temporary ileostomy since. I had some post surgical complications but since they remedied that I have been Feeling the best I have felt in well over 3 years. Even at this moment.
I have daily energy, minor fatigue but overall dare I say “normal”. I have a top of the head to mid thigh pet scan this Friday because my CEA level jumped from 13-47 to an astounding 858. Very alarming. The PET Scan will show if the spread is beyond the lungs and how to proceed. I am now stage 4 colorectal cancer metastatic to the lung. And hopefully just the lungs. Radiation and surgery are not viable options for me to treat the lungs. Once I become symptomatic and I don’t know what that even looks like, I will begin chemotherapy infusions similar to what I had before but with a different type of chemo. I will lose all my hair, not that I have any, but eyebrows, beard and all. The prognosis based on data is 6 months to 2 years. But with medical advancements and the FIGHT of a Lion I plan to surpass those data points and by a lot. I am NOT a statistic. My body and my cancer have responded well to chemo as I got to NED from chemo prior. But genetically my cancer is prone to 2 things. Recurrence (bad) but slow growing (good).
I have sat and processed all of this information for a few weeks and I plan to fight and keep fighting hard.
Work wise nothing changes. I love what I do for a living, the people I work alongside and I am not letting any of this take that away. I wish the news was better but this is where I am.“
Doesn’t sound great, with stage 4 colorectal cancer metastatic to the lung. But Jason’s attitude and resilience are really impressive. He’s been battling for a couple of years now and seems to be in a really positive mindset. It’s commendable.
When we spoke on the phone, he had a lot of great fart jokes related to the ileostomy, which, I think if you can bring humor into something like this, it shows a really strong mentality and commitment to the fight.
I would like to share the Go Fund Me that is currently active:
So far, so good, with nearly $27,000 raised so far. There are some really nice donations in there and it will continue to climb.
I’ll update the story when Jason posts the results of the upcoming scan.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com