'General Hospital' star John J York says transplant treatment is on a 'rocky terrain' amid cancer battle
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: John J York, renowned for his long-running role as Mac Scorpio on ABC's hit soap opera 'General Hospital', is now on a challenging medical journey.
He is currently undergoing a blood stem cell transplant to combat two forms of cancer, reports People.
John J York says 'there's still a long road ahead' in his treatment
Speaking about his treatment, the veteran actor said, "There's still a long road ahead, but these next 100 days I would say is rocky terrain."
York is waiting to see if the transplant would be compatible with his body before the treatment starts.
I hope you’ll all take just a minute today to send some healing thoughts to my friend John J. York. It’s a big week and we would all appreciate your help. Thank you. 🙏❤️ #JohnJYork @GeneralHospital #gh60 #gh #generalhospital #MacScorpio #MatchForMac @BeTheMatch @JohnJYork pic.twitter.com/DM0fMc6nll
— Jon Lindstrom (@thejonlindstrom) November 7, 2023
In September, he revealed that he had been diagnosed with two forms of cancer in December 2022.
York has been diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndromes and multiple smoldering myeloma, both of which are blood and bone marrow disorders.
He further talked about finding a donor. "It's literally a whole new ballgame from then on. From what I understand — this is kind of how I received the information it has been like pre-game and practice," York told the outlet.
John J York remains positive about his treatment
"This is what has to be done," said York who is trying to remain positive about his medical journey.
"The first week is an 8-day process of heavy-duty chemo, where I'll probably lose my hair, and that’s OK," he added.
“And, you know, there's just all kinds of issues. I could, I could pass away. I mean, maybe not from the chemo, but when the transplant starts," he continued.
"So after the eight days of these different chemo treatments that they're doing, they're basically wiping my body of what I've been living with in terms of my blood and DNA and all this stuff for my entire life," York further said.
"They're wiping that clean and then they're going to put new stuff in me from the donor. And that’s going to be the new me," he added.
York is required to go to the hospital everyday for his "100-day process" after he receive the blood stem cell transplant.
"If tests come back after, let's say after 30 days or 35, 40 days, tests are looking really good, that would be wonderful," he explained.
"Then they may say, 'You don't have to come in tomorrow, come in the next day. And then we'll test after that.' That goes on for 100 days, and I would say the first probably 20 days [after the transplant] are the crucial days," he shared.
"From the first day of the transplant, I'm guessing 14 to 20 days out, they'll be able to tell with testing daily how I'm receiving and accepting the stem cells," he concluded.
