Reynolds Unwrapped creator Dan Reynolds was profiled by his alma mater State University of New York at Oswego. The alumni publication article can be downloaded here (pdf). They highlight Dan’s struggle with cancer and how it has affected his cartooning.
Reynolds was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2008 and underwent a particularly rough regimen of chemo- therapy: six hours a day, five days a week for three months through a port installed in his chest. He had a week off between each round of treatment, usually spent lying on his side in the fetal position; the effects of the chemo were so intense. “It was like drinking a nuclear shake,” he says. “It’s basically poison.”
Reynolds coped by sharing his cartoons, calling it “using humor to fight the tumor.” While hooked up to an IV pumping chemo into him, he would wheel down the hall handing out greeting cards with his gags to other patients, even doctors and nurses.
“We had cancer in common, no one knew for 100 percent sure what would happen. Through the use of humor I was able to bring smiles to their faces,” he says. “It helped me as much as it helped them.”
Now in remission for nearly a year, Reynolds hasn’t forgotten his fellow cancer patients. He shows slides of his hospital-related cartoons at American Cancer Society events to raise money for the cause, and donates his work to the society’s e-cards reminding people to get check-ups.
Great article, Dan…very mooooooooving! Your cartoons always make me laugh out loud. Glad you’re doing well and best wishes.
That?s a great article. Very inspirational. Keep up the good work, Dan.
I wish I could subsist on four hours of sleep per night. Don’t know how you managed to do that for so long.