Steelers' Smith dealing with son's serious illness

[January 28, 2009]  TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Aaron Smith understands tough times, learning at a young age how medical issues can unsettle a family. He also knows that football can be a motivator, a driving force to carry an athlete through the bleakest of moments.

Moments like right now.

Smith, one of the top players on the Pittsburgh Steelers' league-leading defense, is preparing to play in his second Super Bowl in four seasons. Better still, 5-year-old son Elijah is about to join him, eager to watch his dad play for a championship.

But three months ago, Smith and his wife Jaimie, who also have three young daughters, received devastating news about their son. What they thought was a simple chest cold turned out to be a form of cancer, lymphoblastic leukemia, which attacks white blood cells.

"We were in the emergency room that night and the doctor said we had to see an oncologist. He came in and asked us, 'How much do you know about leukemia?' " Smith said Tuesday. "We started with that on a little bit of a whirlwind during the first couple of weeks. And for most people, you don't even know what leukemia is. I had no idea. I knew it was a form of cancer, but I didn't know anything about it, let alone that a child could have leukemia."

The prognosis is promising -- an 80 percent survival rate -- but Elijah is only beginning what is expected to be a 3 1/2-year recovery period. Still to come: more intensive chemotherapy, more sleepless nights, more worry, more uncertainty.

"The way it started out was that he had a fever longer than five days, so we just went to the hospital initially to just get some blood work done and see what was going on. And then we found out he had leukemia," Smith said. "We're all just dealing with it."

Smith has a reputation for being one of the toughest players on one of the NFL's toughest teams, yet he believes his son has him beat.

"The Lord has worked amazingly in his spirits and his cheerfulness. He's just unbelievable," Smith said.

Elijah is expected to arrive in Tampa on Wednesday and stay for the rest of Super Bowl week, although the family must be careful -- even a cold or a cough can be a worry.

"His doctors wouldn't let him come if his (blood) cell counts weren't good enough. Obviously, we're not going to be doing stuff that a lot of people do, but he'll come up to the stadium and watch the game and he'll be here," Smith said. "So this is truly a blessing during a time like this, that his cell counts were well enough for him to come."

Smith was reluctant to talk about his son's illness until the Steelers held a post-Christmas blood drive in their locker room. Once news of his son's situation became public, hundreds and hundreds of fans lined up on short notice to donate. A grateful Smith went from donor to donor, shaking hands.

His teammates, aware of Smith's reluctance to talk about the illness, offered no hint of what Smith was going through. The diagnosis came the week of an important game against the Giants, and Smith missed the entire week of practice. Not only did he show up to play, he made five tackles.

When Smith was left off the AFC Pro Bowl team despite his 5 1/2 sacks, a large number in a 3-4 defensive system that channels most sacks to the outside linebackers, his teammates said he was the most deserving player not selected.

"He's a Pro Bowl player and everyone in here knows that," defensive end Brett Keisel said. "But we're not going to whine about it."

Neither has Smith. Despite getting little sleep before practice some days, Smith never cites his son's illness as a reason for a bad day at work.

"It's not the easiest thing," he said. "I'm a pretty reserved and quiet guy myself, but anything with my personal life or my family I try to keep as far away as possible as I can. But this is something that I have to deal with and this is my life right now."

[Associated Press; By ALAN ROBINSON]

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