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Intro: It just didn't seem fair. He was young, in college, with a great girlfriend and a future career. But then he got hit with a potentially deadly cancer. The chances of beating the disease were fair, but only if he had surgery and heavy doses of chemotherapy - a treatment with many side effects including the possibility of becoming sterile. But the man you're about to meet wanted a family. So he vowed to fight for his life, and future generations.
| Video | Audio |
VO: pictures of Tony |
AT AGE 21 TONY BECK WAS READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD. HE HAD A PROMISING FUTURE. A STEADY GIRLFRIEND. THEN LIFE CHANGED. |
| Tony Beck (17:55) | "ON MY 22ND BIRTHDAY I STARTED CHEMOTHERAPY." |
VO: Tony in park or still photos or generic chemo footage |
AN INTENSIVE AND DIFFICULT TREATMENT THAT FIGHTS A RARE CANCER CALLED RHABDOMYOSARCOMA. |
Tony Beck (22:00) Had Cancer |
"MY BODY WAS GETTING SLAMMED." |
VO: from video of Tony To Viv stand up To Tony and Kathy in park |
THE CHILDHOOD CANCER CAUSES TUMORS IN MUSCLES. TONY'S DISEASE DAMAGED A KIDNEY, WHICH DOCTORS REMOVED. THEY ALSO REMOVED A SPOT THAT GREW ON HIS HAND. SO WITH TONY'S FUTURE WIFE AT HIS SIDE, |
Kathy Beck (25:46) Tony's Wife |
"HE DIDN'T KNOW HE'D TAKE ME AS HIS FUTURE." |
VO: Tony and Kathy in park To animation |
TONY FOUGHT FOR HIS LIFE AND THE LIVES OF HIS FUTURE CHILDREN. YOU SEE, CHEMOTHERAPY KILLS CANCER CELLS, BUT IN THE PROCESS, IT ALSO KILLS SOME NORMAL CELLS. AND THE STRONG CHEMO TONY HAD KILLED CELLS THAT PRODUCE SPERM, CAUSING LONG-TERM STERILITY. BUT ... |
Carola Arndt, M.D. (9:55) Mayo Clinic Pediatric Oncologist |
"TONY WAS WELL ENOUGH AT THE TIME OF DIAGNOSIS THAT HE WAS ABLE TO STORE SOME SPERM PRIOR TO CHEMOTHERAPY." |
VO: Tony and Kathy in Dr. Arndt's office To Tony and Kathy in park |
DR. CAROLA ARNDT SAYS BANKING SPERM FOR PATIENTS LIKE TONY OFFERS HOPE THAT THEY WILL BEAT THE CANCER AND LIVE ON TO RAISE A FAMILY. NOW, SIX YEARS AFTER TONY'S LAST DOSE OF CHEMO ... |
| Tony (36:45) | "SIERRA, CAN DADDY HAVE A KISS?" |
| VO: Tony, Kathy and Sierra playing in park | TONY IS A DADDY. LITTLE SIERRA IS 17 MONTHS OLD. AND TONY'S WIFE KATHY IS EXPECTING ANOTHER BABY IN ABOUT 6 MONTHS. |
| Tony Beck (25:16) | "IT'S A MIRACLE. I THANK GOD EVERY DAY." |
VO: Tony and family in park |
THANKS FOR BEING ABLE TO WATCH HIS FAMILY GROW AFTER SURVIVING A DEADLY CANCER. |
| FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS. |
Tag: Not all chemotherapy causes males to become sterile, but some strong types do. The chemo only effects sterility, not sexual function.
Even though Tony was 21 at diagnosis, he was treated by pediatric oncologists because his cancer is primarily a childhood disease. His success story shows how medical advances have improved in the treatment of childhood cancers. Diseases that used to kill are now cured 65 to 75-percent of the time. For more information, log on to our Web site at ...
STATIONS: Per the licensing agreement, please provide a link from your station's Web site to www.mayoclinic.org/medical-edge or voice tag "mayoclinic.org/medical-edge" for more information.
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