One year ago, Trojan men's soccer midfielder Jorge ("Pops") Vasquez put together a strong sophomore season on the pitch. With two hat-tricks for a total six goals, two assists and 14 points, he proved to be a strong weapon in TIU's young, growing offense. What ensued personally for Vasquez in the next half year after the 2019 season ended was something few people his age expected. 

"As college athletes we feel like we're on top of the world," Vasquez explained. "Like nothing's going to take us down."

As the summer heat began to intensify and the calendar flipped from May to June, Vasquez went to the doctor to have two masses on his body examined. One was deemed not to be of any concern. The other, needed to be looked at further. After a series of tests and scans, doctors discovered the root of the problem.

"The first thing the doctor said when he came up to me was 'cancer,"  Vasquez said. "For me it was one of those things where if I didn't take note of it by January or March of next year, it's more than likely I could have been in the hospital."

With much of his family living in the central American nation of Belize, Vasquez found it tough to tell them of the discovery. While there was not a large history of cancer in his family, there was a concern for the young 20 year old's condition. Vasquez's paternal grandmother experienced a battle with ovarian cancer years earlier and endured a difficult fight.

"Telling them was one of the hardest parts of it," Vasquez described. "The last thing they remember about cancer is my grandma passing away. When I told them I was going to go in for surgery and therapy, they thought it was going to be really bad because of what they recalled from my grandmother. They were supportive, so I wanted to make sure they knew I was doing well."

For his treatment, Vasquez had his tumorous mass removed via surgical procedure, followed by one round of chemotherapy, conducted in seven days over a 21 day span and six hour infusions throughout the week. After a successful procedure, the early stages of therapy appeared positive for Vasquez, but ran into an issue down the stretch.

"Something they like to do between therapies is blood tests to see where your levels are at," Vasquez explained. "One of the biggest concerns is your immune system, and on the second to last day before the final infusion, it turned out I had no more white blood cells. Going forward, I instead got an immune booster shot, which essentially used bone marrow to regenerate the white blood cells. My levels went back up and I was able to get the infusion done."

While Vasquez completed his treatment, he recalled the experience of going through chemotherapy treatment and the challenges it posed psychological in addition to physically. 

"The whole process is kind of lonely," Vasquez said. "When you go through chemotherapy you cannot be around anyone, and since we're in a pandemic, it makes it harder. You have to distance for this and now keep more distance."

"Pops is one of my closest friends on the team," said junior midfielder Tyler Kooi. "Seeing him fight through this and not let it break him is a true testament to his character and how hard he works. It is a huge inspiration for me and others on the team to work hard and never quit no matter how hard things get."

While these challenges were present, so was his team, Kim Beach, men's soccer chaplain served as a strong spiritual support for Vasquez, while the men he played with displayed their support for their teammate by shaving their heads.

"Miss Kim (Beach) was very supportive on the spiritual side," Vasquez explained. "For  people willing to get involved in the whole situation is pretty huge. For them to show support through it all really helped with that feeling of loneliness and to know that I have a bunch of guys there for me."

"Pops embodies the grit we want all men to develop," Beach said. "He was humble enough to ask for help when he needed it, yet showed a tenacity and determination to return to the pitch. He's my hero."

While the start of the 2020 Trinity men's soccer season has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trojans have already returned to the field to begin practicing. And among the 46 men suiting up is Vasquez, after a challenging summer.

"Being out there for practice already is a surreal feeling," Vasquez described. "At the point of being told you have cancer, the last thing you think of is actually playing or being able to play. It's a huge blessing in my eyes. For a lot of the guys, seeing me out there I feel is very motivational for them as well."

"To figure out at age 20 you get diagnosed with cancer, you don't see it happen that much," Vasquez said. "I feel like if I have the chance to let people know that being 20 years old and letting them know of my experience and how well I handled it, hopefully if someone else would be in my situation, they could handle it as well."

Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness and lifelong learning.