Chiefs’ Berry cleared to return after lymphoma treatments

While football became an afterthought as Berry battled cancer, his absence from the field was still noteworthy for a team that just missed reaching the playoffs last season. The former Vol and now safety for the Kansas City Chiefs beat cancer and his story is inspiring patients going through the same battle.

The Chiefs said in a brief statement late Tuesday that Berry would join quarterbacks, rookies and injured players in the first day of training camp Wednesday at Missouri Western.

Veterans report Friday, and the first full-squad workout is Saturday.

Chiefs safety Eric Berry on Wednesday provided chilling insight into the cancer recovery process that often left him in tears.

“When it happens to you and you are living it, and going through chemo, it sinks in”, he said. I did that in the beginning and ended up crying to my dad for about 30 minutes at breakfast because it was a long road. He was just sitting there and all of the sudden he got all teary-eyed and was like, ‘Wow, man, I have cancer.’ And then he started looking ahead like, ‘What if I’m not going to be able to do this or if I can’t do that?’.

Last November, Berry, one of the best players in the league, noticed some pain his his chest. Coach Andy Reid says that the two-time Pro Bowler “stands a reasonable chance [to play] in the early part of the season”, according to the Chiefs website.

“Everybody wants you to be strong in this situation”, Berry told CBS Sports, “But you can’t be strong every day”.

After the game he went to get treatment on his arm, because he wasn’t sure what it was. Berry made a visit to a Tennessee spring practice back in April and had a picture with Butch Jones, which you can see here.

Still, his teammates were happy to see him back. Berry subsequently underwent treatment that included chemotherapy and radiation near his offseason home in Atlanta.

“I was at a loss for words, I was just so excited … there were many times where I didn’t know if I would wake up tomorrow”.

-Nov. 24: The Chiefs announced that Berry had been diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma and had left the team. Berry passed on traditional chemotherapy treatments in favor of a method that would allow him to work out. “First of all I couldn’t believe I made it through the workout and I couldn’t believe it was that hard”.

But Berry said he tried to have a positive attitude and energy.

And let’s talk about how, at least up until now, Eric Berry is beating the hell out of it.

The boost for the Chiefs, not only for their chances in the competitive AFC West but for their team chemistry with Berry’s return is nearly immeasurable.

“He’ll get two good days of work in, we’ll see where he’s at, and then if he just goes through individual, that’s OK”, Reid said.