Catch it early takes on new meaning for Galway star

Date Published: 07-Jun-2012

ENJOY life. Life is short. Enjoy it,” insists Galway senior footballer, Damien Burke. This is the conclusion the Corofin man has succinctly and painfully come to following his unpleasant courtship with testicular cancer recently. Certainly, it is a mantra he intends to embrace from now on.

For many of those diagnosed with cancer, the shock alone takes a terrible toll but Burke decided to adopt a totally different view when his worst fears were confirmed last December. This stance was not one based on fear or pity but, true to his spirit and courage as a top class athlete, he simply looked upon cancer as another – albeit dissimilar – challenge.

Sitting in the sundrenched stand of Pearse Stadium, Burke – who has selflessly agreed to become the face of Cancer Care West’s ‘Catch It Early’ awareness campaign – tells his story with great humility. Yet, for all that, you can sense the winner in the Galway centre-half forward. Of his determination to succeed . . . be it with Galway, Corofin or in his battle with cancer.

Burke’s thoughts on his illness are somewhat reminiscent of legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong, who wrote in his absorbing book, ‘It’s Not About the Bike’, about his personal battle with the disease. In the book, Armstrong notes: ‘One of the redeeming things about being an athlete – one of the real services we can perform – is to redefine what’s humanly possible.

‘We cause people to reconsider their limits, to see that what looks like a wall may really just be an obstacle in the mind. Illness was not unlike athletic performance in that respect: there is so much we don’t know about our human capacity, and I felt it was important to spread the message,’ finishes the former Tour de France star.

That’s what winners do and, in this respect, Burke is as equal a champion as Armstrong. Self pity! “No, no, why bother?” says 28-year-old, although these days the rejuvenated Corofin man says he feels like 21 again! “Things happen for a reason. You just have to deal with it and move on.”

Although Burke was diagnosed with testicular cancer last December, he knew things weren’t right in the couple of months leading up to receiving the bad news. “I had a fair idea that there was something wrong but I suppose it took a while to go into the doctor. In the end, it was the excruciating pain that made me go in and it kind of all went from there really.”

Burke had braced himself for the worst and, by doing so, he had taken the fear factor out of the equation. “I kind of expected it, to be honest. I just had a feeling it was cancer but I didn’t worry too much because I had been aware of Aidan Donnellan’s and even Ronan McGarrity’s cases.

“Aidan Donnellan is a good friend of mine; he is a club-mate of mine. He is living a happy life now. He has played years of football after his cancer and he has had no problem since. So, you look at the positives really, rather than putting the head down. I had talked to Aidan and he was a great support to me.”

Burke underwent his operation at UHG and within three or four days he was back home recovering again. He has “the height of praise” for the staff at the hospital – “I couldn’t speak highly enough of them” – and he says their help put him at ease with the whole process.

“After I came out of hospital, I was back training in about three weeks,” chirps Burke. “I just didn’t want to hang around. I would be a very active person so I wanted to get back doing stuff and keeping myself busy.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.