Brian Boyle, of the New Jersey Devils, returned to the ice earlier last month while in the midst of battling chronic myeloid leukemia. Now Boyle has announced that his cancer is in remission, reports NHL.com.
Boyle was diagnosed with leukemia last year and immediately started treatment Initially, he was told it could take up to 18 months for the disease to go into full remission, but it ended up taking only 12 months and 33 days.
“A test (BCR-ABL1) looks for leukemia cells in your blood and when I was first diagnosed, it was at 75 percent,” Boyle explained. “At the end of last season, it was at .08 percent, and in July I was .04 percent.”
As of October 22, the tests showed all zeros, according to Boyle.
“It’s full molecular remission, and I feel really good,” he said. “It was kind of the way the progression was happening the last few tests. When I told my wife, she was excited and got emotional.”
Boyle elaborated: “The game plan has been working well, and now I’m just going to continue with it. It was good news, but it doesn’t change a whole lot for me and I’ll continue taking the medicine.”
In addition to taking his meds once a month, he will have regular checkups with his doctors to ensure that the cancer remains in remission.
Boyle has scored four points in 10 games this season and averaged almost 12 minutes in ice time. He’ll next play on Saturday when the Devils face off against the New York Islanders.
Click here to read our previous coverage on Boyle and click here to read more about Hockey Fights Cancer, a joint initiative between the National Hockey League (NHL) and National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA).
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