Winning the War
Shortly after his cancer diagnosis, a fraternity brother told Anthony Herrera (James, AS THE WORLD TURNS) he was embarking on “the role of a lifetime.” Seven years later he’s still center stage, to the delight of his fans and the happy surprise of his doctors.
In 1997 Herrera was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma, a rare and often lethal cancer. Two bone marrow transplants, one stroke and one seizure later, Herrera has lived to tell the story in The Cancer War, his new self-published book. In it, he chronicles his medical and emotional experiences with vivid, tactile detail.
“I have what I call a movie clip memory,” Herrera says. “I don’t remember my whole life like it’s a film, but specific things, unique things, and dramatic things. You have a hard time forgetting what it’s like being strapped in one of those gizmos for total body radiation.”
Between ATWT tapings, Herrera has gone on tour to promote the book. So far he’s been to eight cities, all within driving distance of his hometown, Wiggins, Ms. “[Writing the book] was a tremendous amount of work, but it’s very rewarding,” he says. “I didn’t write the book to make money. [I was talking to] a Sigma Chi brother, who is a doctor. I said I don’t know if I should write about this or just get on with my life. And he said, ‘You don’t have a conflict, you have an obligation.’ He was right.”
Herrera began jotting down notes for the book in 1999, and did much of the writing last year while living in Buenos Aires. He was inspired by his desire to spend time in a Spanish-speaking country (his paternal ancestors are from Spain, but Herrera was born and raised in Mississippi), and by the raves he’d heard from a friend with an apartment there. He soon fell in love with the atmosphere — and the famously inexpensive cost of living didn’t hurt either. “I’d get up, grab my coffee thermos and go right to the computer, and I was good for about four hours,” he recalled. “I got a tremendous amount of work done.”
The end result of the book has given Herrera a link to fellow cancer survivors, many of whom have used his Web site www.thecancerwar.com to buy his book and e-mail him with their own stories.
Traveling for the book also led Herrera to a chance airplane encounter with Senator Trent Lott (R., Miss.), who listened to Herrera’s desire to push for increased stem cell research to cure certain cancers. “I asked Trent if I could have further discussions with him, and he said he would introduce me to other senators,” Herrera said. “It’s not political, it’s scientific. This is about health; it’s about taking care of our citizens, and citizens of the world. I think politicians and cancer patients need to get together and truly understand each other’s terms.”
Herrera first appeared as James in 1980 and now recurs frequently. “He stirs things up,” Herrera says. James spells trouble especially for Barbara Ryan, James’ ex-wife, inspiration and sometimes nemesis. “Colleen [Zenk Pinter, Barbara] and I have always worked very well together. I think we’re the Joe Montana and Jerry Rice of daytime. It’s that kind of relationship. There are things that are going on in the subconscious that you couldn’t describe if you had to. I think Colleen and I work extraordinarily well together.”
In addition to his work on ATWT, Herrera is also busy with his site Poetry Theatre www.poetrytheatre.org where viewers can watch video clips of Herrera, Hume Cronyn, Tandy Cronyn, longtime friend Willie Nelson and fellow ATWT star Peter Parros (Ben) recite famous verses. It was Nelson’s idea to put the performances online, after hearing about Herrera’s one-man poetry show years ago.
Four years into his latest remission, Herrera seems to be cramming as much activity into his life as he can. Between promoting his book, lobbying for cancer research, working on Poetry Theatre and working on the soap, there’s plenty to do and no sign of him slowing down. What he said about James could easily apply to himself: “One thing I like about [him] is that he’s so unpredictable. You’re never really sure what he will or will not do.”
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