Swimmer with cancer cleared to head to Beijing

[July 24, 2008]  ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Eric Shanteau, who decided to put off surgery for testicular cancer until after the Olympics, has been cleared to head to Beijing with the U.S. swim team.

"It's just a big weight off my shoulders, more than anything else," Shanteau told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Wednesday. "I'm walking a little lighter right now, which is great."

Since being diagnosed last month, he's been closely monitored to make sure there's no sign the cancer is spreading. This week, after getting the results of a final round of blood tests before the team breaks camp in Palo Alto, Calif., the 24-year-old swimmer was given the go-ahead to make the trip overseas.

The Americans leave Friday for a final round of training in Singapore, then travel to Beijing on Aug. 4. The swimming competition begins five days later.

Shanteau's doctors told him he shouldn't be at risk competing at his first Olympics, though he will head back to the U.S. before the closing ceremonies. He plans to undergo surgery at Emory University hospital in his native Atlanta shortly after he returns.

"I'll be able to take a couple of days after the swimming to relax, enjoy the Games and the city, get out and see some things," he said. "Then I've got to get back and take care of this."

Shanteau received the stunning cancer diagnosis just a week before he traveled to Omaha, Neb., for the U.S. Olympic trials. He then claimed a spot on the team with a second-place finish in the 200-meter breaststroke, ahead of former world record holder Brendan Hansen.

That left Shanteau with a difficult decision: undergo surgery immediately, as is standard medical practice but would have ruined his Olympic hopes, or put off surgery until after the Beijing Games and rely on the cancer not spreading during that more than monthlong period.

Shanteau chose the latter option, but vowed to return home if there was any sign his condition was worsening. He has undergone weekly blood tests, which will continue even after he arrives in Asia, and his doctors were confident enough to cut back on CT scans so his body wouldn't be exposed to excessive radiation.

"We're not expecting to see any kind of dramatic changes that will affect my participation in the Games," he said. "You can never be sure. We're still going to keep an eye on it. But at this point, it's kind of nice to know I shouldn't have to worry about it as much."

Shanteau has been overwhelmed by the response to his cancer revelation, which is especially poignant since his father was diagnosed with lung cancer a year ago and is still fighting the disease.

"It's nice to know I'm helping other people in my position around the world," he said. "I've gotten a lot of notes, a lot of messages, packages and everything else. A lot of it is from the cancer community, which is like a family. That obviously means a lot and is kind of the biggest support because they know what I'm going through and they can relate to it." 

Shanteau also has a better understanding of what his father is enduring.

"You don't want anyone in your family to have cancer. When I got it, it was kind of like insult to injury," the swimmer said. "But as far as I'm concerned, it's helped me to kind of relate to what he's going through a little more. I understand the process and the mentality of having cancer."

While describing it as "one of the toughest situations I've ever been through," U.S. men's coach Eddie Reese said one would never know Shanteau has cancer from the way he's been training in California.

"Eric is an overworker," said Reese, who also is Shanteau's personal coach. "He always works harder than you want, more often than you want. He's doing the same thing in camp. He's working great. He did a set today that put him in better position than he was going into the trials.

"Also," the coach went on, "he's further away from the discovery of his cancer. So the heat of the moment has been diminished. He's focusing more on his swimming now than ever before. He's in great shape."

Indeed, Shanteau expects to compete in Beijing with a different attitude than he had before the discovery of cancer.

"It's kind of put the whole sport in perspective," he said. "I don't put more pressure on what I'm doing. I can kind of relax and have fun. That helps a lot.

"I know there's life after the Olympics."

[Associated Press; By PAUL NEWBERRY]

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