Dan’s Story: Smiling Through Adversity

Daniel Potokar was a rising star on the legendary Ohio State University football team when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer in late 2007.

Even after many grueling months of treatment, which included surgery and multiple rounds of chemotherapy, Dan’s battle with cancer was not yet won. In the spring of 2008, the cancer had viciously returned to the then 20-year-old’s brain.

Dan was referred to The Zangmeister Center where Dr. Tarek Chidiac put the former OSU receiver on an aggressive full-brain radiation treatment and performed Stereotactic Radiosurgery, a procedure similar to laser surgery, which eventually destroyed the remaining cancerous tumors.

“I always felt very comfortable at The Zangmesister Center,” Dan shares. “Every morning I was greeted with smiles from everyone from the receptionist to my doctor. I also had the two most amazing nurses who took great care of me.”

Dan now spends his time getting back to the things he loves most in life: his fiancée, Stephanie, his two canine companions, Maggie and Lucy, hitting the gym and serving as an assistant coach to the OSU Buckeyes.

“My cancer stole a year of my life, but reinforced my belief in staying positive,” he says. “Always believing that even the worst situations will get better helps me through my everyday life.”

In February 2009, an MRI revealed that all five tumors in Dan’s brain had disappeared. On October 1, 2009, he was officially in remission.

“I have always looked at things two ways—you can get down and be depressed or you can put a smile on your face and remedy the situation.”

Dan’s still smiling.