ProRodeo Sports News - May 14, 2021

Creason won’t let cancer end his dreams

BY KEVIN CARMODY Special to ProRodeo Sports News T he bull that stepped on Fisher his life at 18. Instead, it brought to life a startling revelation, one that pretty much saved Creason’s life. For his 19th birthday, he received a shocking surprise: a diagnosis of stomach cancer. Since then, the cowboy from Fellsmere, Fla., just northwest of Vero Beach, has adjusted to life without a stomach, makes sure not to take anything for granted and lives in the moment as a ProRodeo permit holder. “It’s kind of been a rough journey lately,” said Creason, 21. “But it gets better every day. I’m just blessed to be cancer-free for two years, and I’m doing what I love to do, which is rodeo.” Rodeo runs deep throughout the Creason family bloodlines in Florida and the Southeast. Unfortunately, so does cancer. Creason’s father, Clint, carried a genetic syndrome that was passed to Fisher and his siblings. Clint found out about his advanced- stage colon cancer in his mid-30s and advised Fisher to get tested long before that. He did, just not the way it was drawn up. On Feb. 25, 2019, he underwent a gastrectomy, a complete removal of the stomach. Since the disease had not yet moved beyond the lining of the stomach, Creason wouldn’t need chemotherapy or radiation treatments following surgery. He would, however, need six to eight months to fully recover, which would mean he’d be forced to miss his state high school rodeo finals. He, quite literally, couldn’t stomach that thought. “I had it in my mind that I was going to the finals, even with my feeding tube still inside,” Creason said. “This was the only year I was able to rodeo in high school. My dad got cancer when I was in middle school and we couldn’t afford it. I just had to get stronger and couldn’t say anything about me having a feeding tube or they wouldn’t let me ride.” That May, feeding tubes and drain tubes included, Creason bucked off his first two bulls at the state high school rodeo but made the whistle for his last ride, boosting him to second place in the year-end standings despite missing most of the season. Creason’s abdomen that September day in 2018 in a small-town Florida practice pen easily could have ended FAMILY HISTORY OF CANCER

Jessica Burns photos Bull rider Fisher Creason had an 80-point ride on Silver Spurs Club’s Squirrely to win the Wide Open in Fort Pierce, Fla., Feb. 26. Creason, 21, is two years removed from battling stomach cancer.

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ProRodeo Sports News 5/14/2021

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