Fight is on: Yarrington continues battle with prostate cancer

Curt Yarrington, Bentonville assistant baseball coach, talks about his diagnosis with prostate cancer on Jan. 28 at Bentonville’s Tiger Athletic Complex. Yarrington kept the news of his diagnosis of cancer quiet during last year’s season before undergoing successful surgery over the summer.
Curt Yarrington, Bentonville assistant baseball coach, talks about his diagnosis with prostate cancer on Jan. 28 at Bentonville’s Tiger Athletic Complex. Yarrington kept the news of his diagnosis of cancer quiet during last year’s season before undergoing successful surgery over the summer.

BENTONVILLE -- While Bentonville's baseball team was in the midst of its battle to the Class 7A state championship last season, Curt Yarrington had a much more personal fight on his hands.

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Curt Yarrington, Bentonville assistant baseball coach, hits balls to infielders on Jan, 28 during practice at Bentonville’s Tiger Athletic Complex. Yarrington kept the news of his diagnosis of prostate cancer quiet during last year’s season before undergoing successful surgery over the summer.

It's a war the Tigers' assistant coach continues to fight, even though he has the upper hand for now. It's the battle against prostate cancer, and he wants to help others that may have to deal with this struggle.

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"Not everybody has a platform like I do," Yarrington said. "I'm fortunate to have the coaching staff at my high school and I have this story. I can get the word out there that men need to be checked when they reach 50 years old."

The 57-year-old Yarrington is far from wanting a pity party about his situation. Instead of wallowing in doom and gloom, he can't understand why he has so many positive things in his life when others have a much more difficult time on their hands.

A frequent reminder is the green rubber bracelet he wears on his right wrist because it bears the name of a child that is very close to him.

"This little guy here, he's 4 years old," Yarrington said. "He's the son of our ring bearer from our wedding, and he has some crazy ... I can't even pronounce it. I don't understand why he's going through all this and I'm OK. I still struggle with that a little bit.

"I have to be assured that God has a reason for everything and a purpose for that. Part of that, I think, is not to sit back and say 'OK, you had cancer and you're good now.' That's why I have become a vocal, active advocate to get word out there to men. It's cancer, but it can be cured and it can be taken care of if it's caught in time."

The early warning signs of prostate cancer began to show up in yearly physicals Yarrington had taken since he turned 50, and it eventually led up to a biopsy that he had done March 30. The news he didn't want to hear -- that he had prostate cancer -- came two weeks later, right as Bentonville was in the heart of its baseball season.

Yarrington did reveal it to family members, but when it came to the team or his coaching colleagues, he never said a word because the Tigers had a good thing going at the time. He hid it well because nobody expected anything wrong during the time, and the issue wasn't addressed until after the season was over, when Yarrington realized he needed to share his news with Bentonville head coach Todd Abbott and fellow assistant Jeremy Woody.

"Curt is a pretty laid-back guy, but it was like he was bugging us," Abbott said. "He kept saying 'We need to get together. We need to talk.' We knew something was going on, but we had no idea. We didn't have a clue. When he finally told us, it was like 'Why didn't you tell us? How did you maintain that normal appearance when that's a pretty big deal?'

"Everyone will have to deal some sort of experience with cancer, whether it's personally or your family. It was a shock -- disappointing that he didn't share it at first, but we understood why he didn't. It was also emotional because we're a close group of guys."

Yarrington said he read where the average age for those who deal with prostate cancer is 66, so he is still considered to be on the younger side. Fortunately, his case of prostate cancer was considered to be in the early stages and treatable, so he heard a number of options on how to deal with it before he chose surgery.

He flew to California in July and had his prostate removed at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, where one of the top physicians in the country performed the surgery using the da Vinci robot. He had enough recovery time to be well enough to be back at Centerton Gamble Elementary, where he serves as a physical education teacher, without missing any classes.

"It took me a while to get motivated," Yarrington said. "It wasn't so much how I felt, but it was a matter of motivation. I just started working out again -- I mean really working out -- a couple of weeks ago. I was walking around.

"But I was there at school the first day. I was still a little tender. I remember going to back-to-school night, and being with elementary school kids, they love to give hugs. I had one girl jump into my arms. I caught her, but I had to let her down because I could feel it in my abdomen. It was a good six to eight weeks before I felt normal."

Yarrington will continue to go back for tests, from every three months for a year to eventually once a year, to make sure things are in good shape. In the meantime, he plans on becoming more active in his battle against prostate cancer.

"I haven't become involved with any organization yet," he said. "I find out things like Arnie's Army comes in and has a tournament every year at Kingswood, and I'm going to get involved in that. There are little things like this shirt, which creates a conversation."

Members of Bentonville's team will show their support of Yarrington's cause this spring. When the Tigers take the field, their black baseball caps will have the green ribbon on the right side to support the fight against prostate cancer.

"There was no hesitation when Curt asked," Abbott said. "We were being there for Curt and his family, and we did what we could. Moving forward, we've talked multiple times about him wanting to be an advocate and a spokesperson.

"We told him 'whatever you want to do, let's do it.' It's important. Had he not gone through it, we probably wouldn't be talking anything about it. Whatever we can do to get the word out there, we want to do it. The caps were a simple way to get it out, and all the coaches and players will be wearing it. It's easy to do."

Sports on 02/01/2016

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