Former NFL Star Rick Upchurch Battles Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia With Strength and Hope

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In this powerful and deeply personal story, we follow former Denver Broncos wide receiver Rick Upchurch as he opens up about his life-changing diagnosis with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) — a rare type of blood cancer associated with a genetic mutation called the Philadelphia chromosome. Once a star athlete known for his speed and strength on the football field, Rick’s journey took an unexpected turn in 2010 when he began experiencing unusual symptoms like night sweats, persistent fatigue, and aches and pains that wouldn’t go away.

After a routine blood test revealed abnormally high white blood cell counts, Rick's primary care physician referred him to a specialist. That “specialist” turned out to be an oncologist, a moment that Rick and his wife, Donna, remember vividly — and with shock. The oncologist recommended a bone marrow biopsy, which confirmed what they feared: Rick had chronic myelogenous leukemia, triggered by the Philadelphia chromosome, a genetic abnormality present in most CML cases.

The prescribed treatment? A daily regimen of oral chemotherapy in the form of Tasigna, also known by its generic name, nilotinib. While the word "chemotherapy" often evokes images of hospital visits and IV drips, Rick was relieved to learn that his treatment would be taken in pill form. Still, this was no easy path. He now takes Tasigna (nilotinib) three times a day — a lifelong commitment that helps keep his CML in check but comes with its own set of challenges.

Though the oral chemotherapy has been effective in managing his chronic myelogenous leukemia, Rick’s battle is ongoing. He still faces difficult days marked by night sweats, joint pain, diarrhea, and extreme fatigue, side effects of the powerful medication. Yet through it all, Rick remains determined and hopeful. On his better days, you can find him lifting weights, using the elliptical, or walking — testaments to both his mental resilience and physical strength.

As Rick explains, surviving chronic myelogenous leukemia isn’t just about medical treatment — it’s also about mindset, family support, and giving back. Together with Donna, Rick channels his energy into helping others, particularly children affected by cancer. Their advocacy work and outreach efforts bring comfort and hope to families facing some of the toughest battles imaginable.

Rick’s journey is a powerful reminder of how life can change in an instant — and how we choose to respond makes all the difference. From the shocking diagnosis to the lifelong reality of oral chemotherapy with Tasigna (nilotinib), Rick’s courage shines through.

While he has not required a bone marrow transplant, Rick understands the role that bone marrow biopsies and transplants play in many patients’ journeys. His own experience with bone marrow biopsy was key in diagnosing his CML. For many others, a bone marrow transplant becomes necessary when oral therapies no longer work. Rick’s story helps raise awareness of these procedures and the urgent need for bone marrow donors.

Whether you're a fan of football, a cancer survivor, someone undergoing oral chemotherapy, or just looking for inspiration, this video will leave a lasting impact. Rick Upchurch’s journey with chronic myelogenous leukemia, Tasigna, and the Philadelphia chromosome is one of hope, strength, and purpose.

🎗 KEY TOPICS COVERED:

• Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML) and the Philadelphia Chromosome

• Oral Chemotherapy: Tasigna (Nilotinib) and Long-Term Management

• The Role of Bone Marrow Biopsy in Diagnosing CML

• Side Effects and Coping Strategies During Treatment

• Rick Upchurch’s Life After Diagnosis and Advocacy for Pediatric Cancer

• Understanding the Potential Role of Bone Marrow Transplant in Blood Cancer

📌 ABOUT THIS VIDEO:This video offers a glimpse into Rick Upchurch’s ongoing battle with chronic myelogenous leukemia, the challenges of oral chemotherapy, and the realities of living with a disease tied to the Philadelphia chromosome. It’s an inspiring story of resilience, community, and the power of support from loved ones.

👍 LIKE, COMMENT, AND SUBSCRIBEIf Rick’s story touched you, please like and share this video to spread awareness. Subscribe for more powerful real-life stories and health journeys.

💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS:Do you or someone you know take Tasigna or another oral chemotherapy drug for chronic myelogenous leukemia? How do you manage the side effects?

📢 SHARE THIS VIDEOYou never know who may need to hear Rick’s story today.

#RickUpchurch #ChronicMyelogenousLeukemia #Tasigna #Nilotinib #PhiladelphiaChromosome #BoneMarrowBiopsy #BoneMarrowTransplant #OralChemotherapy #NFL #CancerAwareness #SurvivorStories #HealthJourneys

TRANSCRIPT

Rick Upchurch

Bruce Morton: Greetings and welcome to the @CancerInterviews podcast.  I’m your host, Bruce Morton.  Our guest on this episode has survived a rare form of blood cancer, known as chronic myleogenous leukemia.  Survivorship includes the thrice-daily taking of oral chemotherapy, known as tasigna or nilotinib.  It isn’t easy, but Rick Upchurch of Las Vegas, Nevada is able to do it, and he does it with a smile.  Now it is the time to hear his story, and Rick, welcome to Cancer Interviews.

Rick Upchurch: Thank you very much for having me.

BM: Before we get to your cancer journey, we would like to learn about you and your life away from cancer.  If you would, tell us a bit about where you are from, what you have done for work and when time allows, what you do for fun.  Some of those watching and listening have an idea of what you have done for work, but for those don’t, please fill us in.

RU: I was raised in Holland, Ohio, just outside Toledo by grandmother and grandfather, just a farm kid.  Had a great life, hunting, fishing, out in the garden.  We had pigs, ducks, we had all of those things out there.  I was also a football player, who got drafted out of the University of Minnesota by the Denver Broncos in the fourth round.  I was the 95th player taken.  I played all nine years of my NFL career with Denver.  I was a five-time All Pro and a two-time All-Decade player, so I had some great years with the Denver Broncos.  When I retired because of a neck injury, I got into coaching. I love working with young people.  I think coaching is a great thing.  It is giving back to our community, helping young people on their journey. 

BM: Rick, for all of us who have survived, there was a point in time in something about our health seemed abnormal, something that led to a cancer diagnosis.  For you, when did you notice something wrong and what went wrong?

RU: Actually, in 2010, I wasn’t really feeling myself.  I was aching, I was tired constantly, I was just feeling different than I would normally feel.  I was coughing a lot, I was tired, I just wasn’t feeling right.  Then in 2011, when I was coaching in Florida, I thought I had the flu because I was going in and out of the air conditioning, and going out and coaching.  I thought I had the flu, and I thought I would be okay. Meanwhile, I had to get my thyroid medicine, and when I saw the doctor about that, I learned I was in a bad way.

BM: And what did they tell you that led to a cancer diagnosis?

RU: I went in for a blood test and the next morning, my wife and I got a phone call from our doctor.  They said they needed to see us in their office immediately.  We went down to the doctor’s office and he said he blood test came back “irregular.”  He said he believed he knew what was wrong.  He said my white blood cells were over the top, but after looking at me he wanted to know why I had a couple of large bruises on my shoulder and on a leg.  I said my shoulder bruise was from playing basketball, and the bruise on my leg was from running into a table.  That’s when he said another test was necessary.  The following day again they needed to see my wife and I immediately.  The doctor said he thought he knew what was going on, and gave us an address.  My wife checked out the address and it was for the Florida Cancer Specialists, and that’s when I thought, “Oh, my God!”  We went and that’s when the doctor told me about chronic myleogenous leukemia, which is what they thought I had.  Next, they had to do a bone marrow biopsy, which verified that I indeed had chronic myelogenous leukemia. 

BM: And it was tied to a genetic mutation?

RU: Yeah, it is the Philadelphia chromosome.  It renders the white blood cells ‘immature.’  They have no purpose and they crowd out all of the red blood cells, and now I am in bad shape because the white blood cells are overtaking the red blood cells.

BM: So, here you are, a guy who lasted nine years in the NFL.  You’re a tough guy, but how tough were you upon the horrific news of your diagnosis?

RU: Well, I said it is what it is.  My wife and I looked at each other.  I said, “We’re getting ready for a fight.”  She put on some mittens and said, “I have got my gloves on, let’s get into this fight.”  That’s what we said.  At that time, I was in chronic phase, but I was also getting ready to get into the accelerated phase of chronic myelogenous leukemia.  You have three phases.  You have the chronic phase, you have the accelerated phase and then you have the blast phase.  So, immediately I had to get up on my medication to bring the white blood cell count down.

BM: We’re confident you will be able to learn some tips and tools to help you through your personal cancer journey, but first we would like to invite you to please give us a ‘like,’ leave a comment or review below and share this story with your friends.  Kindly click on the Subscribe button below and click on the bell icon, so you’ll be notified the next time we post an interview.  We also want to remind you we are not distributors of medical advice.  If you seek medical advice, please contact a licensed healthcare professional.

So, Rick Upchurch, what they tell you in terms of treatment options?

RU: If I was going into the blast phase and that’s the one they didn’t want me to get into, because that would require a bone marrow transplant, so immediately I had to get into my medication.  There were some trials that were out there that was goin’ on, so the trials medication that they gave me was called tasigna.  It was supposed to bring down my white blood cell count.  When I started taking that tasigna, I was taking four capsules a day, it brought my white blood cell count almost all the way down to zero.  At that particular time, I couldn’t go into the locker room, I couldn’t get on an airplane because I could catch a cold or the flu and my system wouldn’t be able to handle it.  That was a tough time, so I said to myself, let me get on this medication and do what I gotta do.  I went to my first game as a high school coach and on the sideline I got really sick, I got nauseous.  So, that was my journey, that was the first time that I felt the effects of that medication.  That was tough.  It made me tired, it messed with my appetite, I had night sweats, I was really goin’ through it. 

BM: Rick, football and cancer don’t sound like they go together.  We have had some guests who served in the military, and they tell us their time in the service aided and abetted their approach to their cancer journey.  What about you and football?  Is there anything from your experience with college football, with pro football and as a coach, that served as an influencer in your cancer journey?

RU: Well, your mindset.  Your mindset is to never give up.  Keep movin’.  Get up and do something. Go and help other people and take your mind off of what is going on with you.  That’s what I did, working with the young people. And my wife, she put together blankets.  We went to Ronald McDonald House and took my blankets to the kids after they came off chemo, just doing things to take your mind off what’s going on with your journey. So, for football, I had the mindset that I could go through anything.  If I could go through training camp, six weeks of training camp, two times a day, I could get through this.  It gave me that mindset to keep fighting and never, ever give up. 

BM: You mentioned being nauseous on the sidelines.  As for journey’s bad days, what were the toughest parts?

RU: Tasigna is a medicine to bring down my white blood cells.  When on it, again, I get the night sweats, my appetite was really bad, I couldn’t eat very well.  My joints and my muscles were aching.  I had a lot of diarrhea because my body was having trouble processing the consumption of the tasigna.  When playing football, you ate right, you put the right things in your body, you didn’t put a lot of medications in your body.  So, the tasigna made me sick, it really did.

BM: Rick, we have had guests who have been diagnosed with rare forms of cancer.  Blood cancer isn’t all that rare, but your type of blood cancer is rare, and what we have heard from people diagnosed with rare cancers is they have a difficult time finding people to treat these rare cancers because a lot of oncologists don’t know how to treat them, and the patients need to go to a specialist.  Was this ever a problem for you, or did you feel as though you were under good care?

RU: I always felt I was under good care.  My doctor explained everything to myself and my wife.  We don’t understand or know why this Philadelphia chromosome, this cancer myelogenous is out here.  We don’t know why those cells change.  What we did learn is that the cells, the cancer can be treated.  We learned if it can be caught in its early phase, most of the time, one can live a good, healthy life.

BM: We have talked about what you experience on one of your journey’s bad days.  But you also have good days.  If your health pre-diagnosis could be labeled as 100 percent, what is it like today on one of your good days?

RU: A good day is when I can wake up in the morning, I take my medication, which I take three times a day, and it doesn’t hit me as hard because my body has now adjusted to it, and I get up and I work out.  I go and I work out and take my mind off my body and what it is going through.  If I go and get on the elliptical or if I go and I lift or if I take a walk, that takes my mind off of it for at least an hour.  After that hour, my stomach settles down.  A great day for me is getting out and just enjoying life, seeing my wife in the morning, which is a great thing.  I think of how I am in good hands.  My doctor tells me not to sit around worrying about this stuff.  He says to get out, get exercise and your body will take care of the rest.

BM: Rick, we are going to wrap up now, and we will wrap up the way we almost always do, with the following question.  If you encountered someone diagnosed with leukemia, with your type of leukemia, they might have a million questions for you and you might have lots of answers; but if there was one oint you wanted to make sure got through to this individual, what would it be?

RU: Do what your doctor tells you to do.  Take the medication that they tell you to do.  Don’t sit around moping and worrying about it, and man, gather with your family and let them be your support system.

BM: And what a great support system you have had with Donna.

RU: Donna, my wife, has been there with me, 24/7.  When I was feeling bad, she would come, she would rub me and pat me on the back and say, “Baby, it’s going to be okay, it’s going to be okay, it’s going to be all right.”  She’ll try to put a smile on my face.  That’s the kind of woman she is, she is a kind, caring woman.  I thank God for her for sure.  It is not just my journey, it is her journey for sure, because she has to deal with it as well.  I thank her for her strength, for her positivity for going through this journey as well.

BM: Rick Upchurch, thanks for sharing an outstanding story with us, one that will be informative and of inspiration to those who listen, especially those who have been diagnosed with myelogenous leukemia.  Rick Upchurch, thanks so much for being with us on Cancer Interviews.

RU: You know what, thank you very much and I hope this helps.  Folks, you can get through this.  Just work hard at it, and you’ll be okay.

BM: And we want to remind you as we always do when we conclude, if you or a loved one are on a cancer journey, you are not alone.  There are people out there like Rick Upchurch, like Donna Upchurch, who through words and actions, can help to ease that cancer journey.  So, until next time, we will see you on down the road.

SHOW NOTES

TITLE: Rick Upchurch, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia Survivor – Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

On this episode of the @CancerInterviews podcast, former NFL star Rick Upchurch tells host Bruce Morton about his 2011 diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia, a rare form of blood cancer.  He survived the diagnosis, but has to continue the same regimen he went on when he diagnosed.  Three each day he must take oral chemotherapy, a medication known as tasigna, also known as nilotinib.  Rick still experiences fatigue, along with aches and pains in his muscles and joints, but is able to engage in cardio exercises and weightlifting.

Time Stamps:

05:17 In 2010, Rick experienced night sweats, fatigue and aches and pains.

06:42 A blood test led to his diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia.

09:12 Says his diagnosis is linked to a genetic mutation, the Philadelphia chromosome.

09:47 How he reacted to his diagnosis.

11:20 Rick said he was told he would have to go on oral chemotherapy.

13:34 How his NFL experience influenced his approach to his cancer journey.

16:30 Applauds his care team.

17:37 Rick describes his ‘good’ days.

19:13 Advice to others.

KEYWORDS (tags)

chronic myelogenous leukemia

blood cancer

oral chemotherapy

rick upchurch

tasigna

bone marrow biopsy

philadelphia chromosome

bruce morton

nilotinib

bone marrow transplant