Jim Kelly's feeding tube removed, wife's video shows the battle is far from over
Jim Kelly just had his feeding tube removed, and it seems the first thing he enjoyed was a chocolate shake.
From the look on his face as he got to enjoy actual food consumed the way nature intended, the beverage passing over his taste buds for the first time since returning to aggressive treatment for the oral cancer that recurred March 1, it is hard to imagine anyone loving anything as much as Kelly loved that shake.
However, the view of the aftermath of his reconstruction surgery shows that the 58-year-old Buffalo Bills legend has a long way to go on the road to recovery.
Kelly initially had surgery to remove cancerous cells from his upper jaw in June 2013, including the installation of a prosthetic as his skull was torn apart in pursuit of the malignant growth.
Nine months later, the cancer was back with a vengeance, spreading to his brain.
But against all odds and perhaps by grace of divine intervention, what seemed to be certain doom was averted as the cancer was once again forced into remission.
When it came back for a third time this year, Kelly and his family asked for prayers.
“God works in mysterious ways, because all the negatives might turn into a big positive,” he said. “Now, they can go in and remove the cancer that’s on the other side and rebuild the whole jaw at the same time.”
The Hall of Famer underwent a grueling surgery March 28 to do just that, and since then he has been recovering at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.
On Thursday, his feeding tube came out and Kelly once again got to enjoy his favorite culinary treat.
His wife, Jill, had words to describe her own reaction to her husband’s battle.
“More PROGRESS!!! Huge day…the feeding tube is out and a CHOCOLATE SHAKE! YES!! Amazing! Thank You LORD!!! #KellyTough,” she wrote in a Facebook post with the video.
The Buffalo Bills tried four times to win the Super Bowl and came up short four times in Kelly’s career.
Unlike the football team, however, nobody wants to see cancer try for a fourth time to defeat Jim Kelly.
With any luck, he and his family can get back to a normal life, and this time the cancer will remain in remission, where it belongs.
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