From the bubble to the booth? 49ers’ voice Greg Papa hopeful of broadcasting last two games

Can Greg Papa go from the bubble to the booth The Bay Area broadcast icon is hopeful of resuming his role as radio voice of the ers for the last two games of the regular season as he recovers from leukemia that was diagnosed in July leaving him hospitalized for days and in fear for his life I was yellow My eyes were yellow my skin was yellow Papa revealed in a phone interview Thursday I lost pounds in three days I didn t know if I was going to live at that point Through rounds of immunotherapy and two cycles of chemotherapy Papa is feeling better and sees a window of opportunity to get back in the booth before undergoing a foreseen bone marrow transplant that in theory will be the final step in his recovery I ve spoken to health people at UCSF and a lot of them think I can do it but my hematologist must approve it Papa disclosed I feel like I can execute the call of the contest my vision is strong enough my mind is strong enough I could do it now It s not a gravely dangerous situation anymore Confined to his Danville home in a protective bubble and with a dangerously low white blood cell count Papa went back on the air remotely on Sept with co-host Greg Silver on the Papa and Silver show on KNBR from a m to p m He grew a scraggly beard called his cancer beard because he couldn t shave or use dental floss for fear of a cut which could lead to bleeding and a lethal infection KNBR broadcaster Greg Papa who is receiving healing for acute lymphoblastic leukemia Photo courtesy of Greg Papa Papa was stated at the time of his assessment that he wouldn t be able to drive or progress for a year But he s back behind the wheel for short distances to pick up his meds has dined in a minimal restaurants and has even gone to the movies because his labs have come back so positive It s much different than five months ago when leukemia was discovered in his spinal column and brain and the chemotherapy was applied through a lumbar puncture I m not the boy in the bubble Papa disclosed I could never leave home and it s not like that anymore All my labs were dangerously low for months and they re all in the green now All the substantial ones are normal I m in a different place now Papa not long ago resumed medication for a hereditary heart condition he learned about three years ago The break in taking that medication paused plans for a mid-November bone marrow transplant which was delayed indefinitely The biggest hurdle in getting a bone marrow transplant has already been cleared Finding a donor can be complicated but Papa s older brother Ray and younger sister Judy were perfect matches My mom and dad are both gone but they would be amazed to watch one of their children save the other child s life Papa commented When the transplant is scheduled Judy will have blood and marrow extracted on the East Coast It will be flown in for Greg to undergo a grueling procedure that will leave him hospitalized for a month and have him back in a protective bubble at home They basically take all the immunity out of your body and take you down to zero Papa reported It s almost like they take you down to death put my sister s blood and marrow in me and bring me back to life If I d had it in mid-November there s no way I could have even considered coming back this year Greg Papa the ers' radio announcer on the field at Levi's Stadium on Dec before the team's tournament against the Detroit Lions Photo Cam Inman Bay Area News Group While there are no guarantees Papa s body will accept the transplant it s considered the best way to keep him in remission with the smallest possibility of relapse In the meantime why not do what he s done his whole life He and ers director of broadcasting Bob Sargent began discussing the possibility of Papa returning to the broadcast booth alongside analyst Tim Ryan possibly for the playoffs The ers are - and currently the No seed making a first-round home challenge unlikely Related Articles ers change classification of Brandon Aiyuk s delayed comeback How to watch the ers against the Titans on Sunday ers keys to accomplishment against two-win Tennessee Titans McCaffrey questionable ers Pearsall ready for breakout encounter McCaffrey expected to face Titans Kurtenbach Titans QB Cam Ward has the goods but expect the ers to win anyway Then Sargent Papa mentioned had an idea He explained What do you think about doing the last two home games You don t have to journey ' Papa reported I hadn t thought about that The ers play this afternoon against the Tennessee Titans and then visit Indianapolis on Monday night Dec Papa s target dates would be on Sunday night Dec against the Chicago Bears and Sunday Jan against the Seattle Seahawks a championship expected to be loaded with playoff ramifications It will be up to doctors whether Papa gets the opportunity It s fundamental for me to do but it s not the be-all and the end-all Papa declared My fitness is more major Papa arrived in the Bay Area in at age initially doing radio play-by-play for the Golden State Warriors He was the voice of the Oakland Raiders from through and has done local television for both the A s and Giants He started calling ers games in after a split with Raiders owner Mark Davis who moved the club to Las Vegas Papa s road to recovery has touched countless people he worked with at those organizations as well as the fan bases of those teams His cell phone has been buzzing nonstop since the ers publicized Papa s condition and Papa and his son Derek a KNBR radio host talked about it on the air on Aug Besides ers coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch just about everyone on the Bay Area sports and broadcasting scene has reached out It gives me a reason to get better but at times it s a little overwhelming Papa disclosed KNBR broadcaster Greg Papa who is receiving medicine for acute lymphoblastic leukemia Photo courtesy of Greg Papa Papa has reconnected with chosen college friends from Syracuse and a group of high school buddies put together a fantasy football league to help keep Papa s mind occupied during his bubble period While Papa s split with the Raiders was acrimonious Davis has reached out more than once to see how he s doing He invited me to Las Vegas to light the Al Davis torch Papa mentioned When something like this happens you even connect with people you ve had chosen tough interactions with Healthcare visits this week will determine whether a return to the ers broadcast booth this season is a possibility Even if it happens Papa realizes the fight is far from over I m fine but I m not there yet Papa noted