David Quessenberry On Track For 10th And Final Chemo Session, Plans To Practice In 2015

With Christmas just around the corner, what better time is there to check in on David Quessenberry's ongoing battle with lymphoma? Tania Ganguli has the full story over on ESPN, but here's a snippet or two..

On how the symptoms first appeared:

It all began with a cough, and then came the unrelenting fatigue, until one mini-camp practice, during which Quessenberry felt like he was going to pass out. Texans' trainer Geoff Kaplan knew it was more than a cold and suggested further testing. Had Quessenberry waited any longer, the fluid in his lungs threatened to drown him.

On DQ's support system:

Between his parents, brothers, godmother, girlfriend, teammates and coaches, Quessenberry's support system is involved and far-reaching. But there are few who intimately understand this experience. Thankfully, where football and cancer overlap, a community forms.

...

His football family is a constant fixture in his life. Veteran linemen Chris Myers and Duane Brown orchestrated a day during training camp when the team, coaches and staff all wore "Texans For DQ" shirts. The shirts sold at team stores and raised enough money for the Texans to donate $100,000 in Quessenberry's name to the Lymphoma research foundation. Quessenberry helped present the check during the Texans' Oct. 9 game against the Indianapolis Colts.

On what's coming up now and in the future:

Shortly after Christmas, Quessenberry will start his 10th and final round of chemo. But the end is only the beginning: He'll have radiation and need blood transfusions. Then he'll start a 30-month maintenance process, but he expects to able to return to the field during that time. "I'll have to take chemo pills once a week," he says.

He figures if he can take the pills on Monday and recover on Tuesday, he can be ready by Wednesday, when full practices begin most weeks. He knows how important that maintenance period is; he says many people his age stray, causing the cancer to return.

If you missed this in today's Newswire, go give it a full read because it's definitely worth your time. Needless to say that a full recovery and a long, happy life is what we all wish for DQ; a return to the football field would only be the sweetest of cherries on top.

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