Gov. Phil Murphy and former state Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli are adversaries in New Jersey’s increasingly bitter race for governor, an election in which each candidate has painted the other as too extreme for the state.
But for all their political differences, the Democratic incumbent and his Republican challenger have one very personal thing in common: Both are cancer survivors.
Ciattarelli, 59, was diagnosed with throat cancer four years ago and Murphy, 63, with kidney cancer last year. Both got the news at a pivotal time in their political careers.
Their stories reflect some of the major fears about the vicious disease — as well as the hope and gratitude felt by survivors.
Ciattarelli and Murphy both got cancer even though there was no history of the disease in their families. And both fortunately caught their illnesses early and doctors were able to successfully treat them. Today, they each say they are cancer-free and feeling well.
NJ Advance Media talked to both candidates about their cancer battles and how it links them.
CIATTARELLI’S STORY
Usually, Ciattarelli sports a full head of thick hair. But when he announced his first campaign for governor in October 2016, the Somerset County Republican was shaved to the skull.
“I heard people gasp,” he recalled. “I said, ‘Guys, my health is fine.’”
Ciattarelli, then a sitting member of the Assembly in Trenton, had just shorn his locks to help raise money for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a national charity for childhood cancer research. But that proved to be ironic.
A few weeks after he declared his candidacy, Ciattarelli was diagnosed with throat cancer.
“As we all know, life takes a number of strange twists and turns,” he said.
Then-state Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli announces his first gubernatorial campaign in 2016.
The diagnosis was a surprise. Ciattarelli wasn’t a smoker and cancer didn’t run in his lineage. But his throat felt strange, so he visited a doctor. An ENT scoped him the next day. Tests revealed a tumor on his tonsil.
“The first thought that comes to your mind is: ‘OK, how much time do I have left?’” said the Hillsborough resident, a husband and father of four children.
Ciattarelli announced in January 2017 he was scaling back his campaign for a few weeks but not dropping out of the primary for the Republican nomination to succeed Gov. Chris Christie.
He said he was “fortunate” doctors caught the cancer early. He had successful surgery a month after the diagnosis. He also underwent six weeks of radiation therapy.
Soon, he was back on the campaign trail, though he eventually lost the GOP nod to then-Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, who went on to fall to Murphy in the general election.
Ciattarrelli said he never thought of dropping out of that race.
“My (medical) team told me it was a very curable form of cancer and that I’d be up and running within four to six weeks’ time, and with the right kind of attitude and the right kind of commitment to the post-surgery period, I’d be a-OK,” he said. “And sure enough I was.”
Today, Ciattarelli said his health is 100%.
“If it weren’t, I wouldn’t be running for governor,” said the former lawmaker, who last month won his second bid for the GOP gubernatorial nomination to face Murphy.
Despite the radiation therapy, Ciattarelli said he taste buds are back completely and his capacity to swallow is “as good as ever.”
The whole ordeal, however, gave him a fresh perspective.
“Once you’ve been told you have cancer, if you’re fortunate enough to beat it, you want to live life to its fullest each and every second of every day,” Ciattarelli said. “And I see myself doing that as a candidate for governor.”
MURPHY’S STORY
The governor’s cancer was caught by accident.
Murphy said heart and coronary issues run in his family, not cancer, and he has regularly gone for checkups to be diligent about it. But while a CAT scan over a completely different concern “turned out to be nothing,” he said, doctors discovered a tumor on his kidney.
“This came out of left field,” Murphy told NJ Advance Media.
And that wasn’t the only issue about to engulf his life.
Murphy went in for surgery March 4, 2020. Everything went well. But after being wheeled into his hospital room, he learned some sobering news: The state had its first confirmed case of the coronavirus.
The governor knew this was coming. He had already convened a task force to prepare for COVID-19 spreading in the Garden State, and neighboring New York City had begun to record positive tests.
“Still, it’s pretty stark,” Murphy recalled. “You come out and you get case No. 1. And it wasn’t just that we had case No. 1. It started literally cascading over us immediately. There was no lag.”
“It’s something I’ll never forget,” he added.
Murphy had a month-long recovery plan mapped out. The Middletown resident, a husband and father of four, was going to spend a week or so at home before easing back into full-time work over the following few weeks.
“That kind of got thrown out the window,” he said. “I stayed home probably three or four days working the phones hard. And then had the first press conference Friday the 13th, appropriately.”
Quickly, Murphy became a constant presence in residents’ lives, holding daily press briefings to update how the virus was affecting the state, home to the most COVID-19 deaths per capita in the U.S.
He said it must have been adrenaline keeping him going.
“I was home for three or four days and then was just back in there,” Murphy said. “I never stopped to think why we were able to do it. But we muscled through it.”
Murphy, who is running for a second term, said he’s doing well today — albeit with a few more extra pounds than he wanted to put on during the pandemic. He said his cancer didn’t require radiation or chemotherapy, but he is required to get CAT scans every six months for the first few years after surgery “to make sure everything looks good.”
“I have now had two of those, and they both were flying colors,” he said.
Murphy, an avid runner, said he’s been back to his usual exercise routine for many months and even had a 5K this weekend.
“It scared the heck out of me, obviously,” he said of having cancer. “But it has had no long-term impact. And I hope it stays that way.”
A CANCER KINSHIP?
Both Ciattarelli and Murphy admit their survival gives them a kinship even as they lob sharp criticisms at each other on the campaign trail heading into the Nov. 2 election.
“I think all (former) cancer patients feel to be very fortunate to be members of a very exclusive club of cancer survivors,” Ciattarelli said. “Anything can happen to anybody at any time. As leaders, I would hope — and I’m sure the governor feels the same way — to be an inspiration to anybody who was recently diagnosed with cancer or any other serious disease.”
There are an estimated 16.9 million U.S. residents who have survived cancer and 56,000 New Jerseyans who are estimated to be diagnosed this year alone.
Murphy said he actually spoke to Ciattarelli when he was diagnosed four years ago.
“Thank God he’s beaten cancer,” the governor said. “And I wish him nothing but the very best.”
Murphy likened the connection to the Stand Up to Cancer moments you see at sporting events, when athletes, fans, and coaches take a pause from the action to hold up signs bearing the name of someone they know who has been affected by the disease.
“You see everybody with that sign and you feel like everybody’s got someone who’s gone through this,” he said. “They’re part of a similar journey even if they don’t know each other.”
If you would like more information about cancer, visit the American Cancer Society.
Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.
Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @johnsb01.
"bitter" - Google News
July 18, 2021 at 10:01PM
https://ift.tt/2VZVAjz
Murphy, Ciattarelli are in a bitter war in N.J. governor’s race. But they have this very strong bond. - NJ.com
"bitter" - Google News
https://ift.tt/3bZFysT
https://ift.tt/2KSpWvj
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Murphy, Ciattarelli are in a bitter war in N.J. governor’s race. But they have this very strong bond. - NJ.com"
Post a Comment