Roman Reigns is featured in the Autumn 2019 edition of the Leukaemia Matters magazine. You can check out some of the highlights from the interview below:
On The Stigma Of Leukemia: “I think there is ignorance of leukaemia. The word alone is intimidating. ‘Leukaemia’ it sounds like a cancer word. It sounds like it could take your life.What people haven’t realised is the different phases. That’s the whole thing about me and this huge WWE platform, that’s why I want people to know. I want people to understand that it’s not what people see in the movies. We’re in a different place now; we are making advancements, there are things we are doing to help people and save lives – we just don’t always concentrate on those things.”
Roman Reigns on His Treatment: “I take an oral chemotherapy. I don’t have to go in for radiation. The analogy I use is that I went to war, but I didn’t shoot my gun. Now the question seems to be ‘have you suffered enough?’ or ‘you’re not as bad as this person’. Why should I be as bad as the next person? Do I have to be as bad as the next person to be in a bad way? We’re all different and we all have our own journeys. I’m not going to belittle my story or be ashamed of it just because I didn’t suffer as much as the next person. I would never ask that or never want it to be. I’m very fortunate for how my life has turned out, and the struggles that I’ve met and thankfully conquered. I’m good where I’m at and I don’t need anything worse to prove anything to anybody else.”
“This is what I feel when people see me in that ring, when they know I came through what happened to me and still do something like being a performer and throwing my body around in front of millions of people. The fact that I am still able to do that, I think that should give a lot of hope to people that they can lead a normal life and can still capture their dreams.”
What He Continues To Deal With: “Some days it makes me a little nauseous; I do a good job in trying to keep everything down and not going the full way in terms of being sick. It can disrupt your stomach a little bit. You have to change some of your eating habits. I can’t take in as much protein as I used to. In terms of my alcohol, I’ve got to be that guy who kind of sits on the side of the party here and there, I’ll maybe have myself a glass of wine. For the most part, it’s out completely. I can’t really go in the sun as much, I have hyperpigmentation from my medication. There are a few different effects, but at the end of the day, I woke up. I’d rather deal with a few side effects here and there and continue to wake up every day.”
