[MUSIC PLAYING] Do people call you Tony?
No, they call me Anthony.
What's up, bro? Good morning. How you doing?
I'm good. How are you?
Good. Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you, too.
I think it's awesome. I think it shows a lot about his character, especially being, like, a professional athlete.
How are you? Nice to meet you. How you doing?
It was pretty surreal, I would say. It didn't really hit me right away. Probably didn't really hit me until that first chemo, or maybe the night before. But for a while, I couldn't-- to say to myself, like, I have cancer, it just didn't sound like something that was real.
You have to get a grip if-- you can't go in there with Anthony like this. You have-- I said, how do I tell my son he has cancer?
Attached is a picture of Anthony Rizzo holding up-- he had made a big poster saying "Stay strong, Anthony." And I just-- I started crying. And I think three of our girls were there with me and Anthony. I showed Anthony and that was the first smile I had gotten out of him since the day we found out that he had cancer.
Yeah, it was awesome. For it being my first day, it was something awesome, that lifted my spirits and, you know, probably got me through that first round because I had something else to think about.
He's, you know, a trouper. He's going to make it through it, absolutely. But you know, in the time of need that the Rizzo Foundation has been just fabulous for us.
Well, it sure rips your heart out, that's-- you can say that for cancer.
They worry about me, I know. So it's-- I mean, it's nice to know that they all have my back and care about me that much.
He did very, very well through his transplant course, and he is now receiving the final phase of his treatment, which is an immunotherapy, which is a drug that is an antibody that targets the lymphoma cells connected to chemotherapy, which he will receive every three weeks for a year. And that will conclude his treatment.
He is a rock star. He is amazing. There is no one I know stronger than my Anthony.
He's doing great. He's in remission and I'm very optimistic he is going to be cured.
