Orioles' Trey Mancini Opening up About Cancer Diagnosis That's Expected to Sideline Him for 2020 is Heartbreaking
Few individuals are more beloved in Baltimore than Trey Mancini. The 28-year-old first baseman has won over countless hearts. That's why seeing his update on his battle with colon cancer was so tough to read.
In a piece in The Players' Tribune, Mancini opened up how he found out the news and provided an update on his chemotherapy. In his letter, Mancini showed tremendous courage in how he's handling all of this.
While preparing for the 2020 @MLB season, @TreyMancini was diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer.
— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) April 28, 2020
On April 13, he began chemotherapy treatment that will last for six months. If baseball returns this year, it will be without the @Orioles first baseman.https://t.co/gqtcycRYqZ
Even the title, "I Am So Lucky," shows you just how brave Mancini is being during this tough time. The slugger said he started feeling weak during spring training, but didn't think it was anything serious at first.
However, his symptoms grew worse and declining iron levels called for a colonoscopy. Shortly after, Mancini received the news.
"The doctors thought that I probably had either celiac disease or a stomach ulcer," he wrote in The Players' Tribune. "Colon cancer was a remote possibility, but it was my last concern. I was only 27. No way I had that. My dad had had Stage II colon cancer in 2011, but he was 58 then. We just thought I was way too young for me to have it."
Thank you @PlayersTribune for helping me tell my story!https://t.co/ZOjClL5btd
— Trey Mancini (@TreyMancini) April 28, 2020
Mancini started his chemo on April 13 and will be undergoing treatments for the next six months. Should MLB action resume this season, he knows there's a small chance he'll be able to return before the final pitch of the campaign. Still, that's not bringing him down. In selfless fashion, Mancini is more focused on how he can help others once he's back to full health.
“I know that this is a terrible time for everybody," he said. "So many people have lost jobs, so many people have lost loved ones. After my chemo is done, and when I’m totally cancer-free, I’ve got a few different ideas of what I can do. I’m lucky enough to have a platform that I feel allows me to make a difference for some people — even if it’s just spreading awareness about the importance of getting a physical every year."
It goes without saying, but Orioles fans and thousands of others across the nation are in this young man's corner.