North Carolina State University Athletics
PEELER: 'I Am Dana Again'
7/26/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
July 9, 2010
BY TIM PEELER
RALEIGH, N.C. - For 53 weeks, Dana Bible has not been himself.
The offensive coordinator for NC State's football team first remembers feeling poorly on July 3, 2009, while on vacation in his hometown of Cincinnati, as he went out for his morning four-mile run. The cold and flu symptoms that zapped all of his energy lingered throughout much of training camp and into the season.
On Nov. 20, 2009, while his son Logan was recovering from shoulder surgery less than 24 hours before and NC State's football team headed by bus for a game at Virginia Tech, Bible was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. He was immediately admitted into the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center to begin a 30-day treatment program that put the disease into remission.
That was followed by a six-month period of constant chemotherapy treatments that filled his body with poison, but killed off any remaining cancer cells.
Two weeks ago, Bible went through five more tests of his blood cells and bone marrow. When the results of those tests came back last Wednesday, Bible sat in a room with his wife, Nancy, waiting for positive news from his doctors.
After half a year of hearing "Get well soon" from strangers, "Hang in there" from friends and "I love you" from family, Bible heard the three words that mattered most to him during this difficult recovery: "Complete molecular response."
Those words, reported to Bible by his two primary oncologists, meant that his body is now free of cancer.
"As Dr. [Peter] Voorhees told me, this the best possible news I could receive," Bible said. "There is nothing better that he could have said than those three words.
"It's surely a moment I won't forget."
For Bible, who is typically shy from all types of attention, the completely public battle against leukemia has been a bit overwhelming. He has tried to return to his daily business without much fanfare. He coached as much as he was able, throughout spring practice, though he had to take it easy for much of that time.
But his spirits have been buoyed by the messages he received from all chapters of the coaching fraternity and a broad range of fans from around the country. He can't begin to find the words to describe the gratitude for the support he has received since the initial diagnosis: cards, letters, e-mails, phone calls, you name it.
"I'm here to tell you, during the darkest days of my treatment - and there were some very dark days - that encouragement meant the world to me," Bible said. "There are parts of fighting this disease in which you're all by yourself. It takes a tremendous amount of strength that's hard to find sometimes. So you reach out to that support people are giving you. It really makes a difference when you're having a bad day.
"Jim Valvano got it right when he said you can never give up. I needed that encouragement to help me get through those times."
Bible is trying to find exactly the right way to express his gratitude.
"There's no way I'll be able to thank all the people who expressed their concern," Bible said. "I'm going to try, as best as I can, to make sure they know their voices were heard and appreciated. They really mattered."
But he also hopes to avoid any further attention, as he turns the page on this difficult chapter of his life. He's slowly trying to get back to normal. On a recent morning in his office, he was throwing out some of the surgical masks that he was required to wear after his body's immune system was obliterated as part of his treatment. He's thrilled to be able to shake hands again.
For the next five weeks, he'll try to regain the strength necessary for the upcoming season. Bible, always fit and trim, is trying to get back into shape. That's not exactly easy for someone whose body has been flooded with all kinds of poison over the last seven months.
"Right now, I'm not strong," he said. "My body is a mess. For a year now, I've either had leukemia or been in treatment. I've either been taking chemotherapy or mega antibiotics that will knock you on your [butt].
"I'm now three weeks clean with no cancer, no chemo, no antibiotics. This is the first time I've been me in more than a year. I am Dana again."
Words can't describe how excited he is for the coming season, and it has nothing to do with having two experienced quarterbacks, the ACC's best receiving corps and the possibility of having a high-powered offense.
"I've always looked forward to the football season, because I love what I do," Bible said. "But there is a heightened sense about the season coming up, because it's like a second chance to do what I've always wanted to do. There was never a guarantee that I would be back out on the field and be part of a profession that I respect and value. So I'm really looking forward to working with the players.
"I'll be honest with you, if I wake up in the morning, I have a good day going already. And now you tell me I get to go coach football? Shoot, it doesn't get any better than that."
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
