Local basketball legend Dwyane Wade has gone public with the news he had kidney cancer in 2023.
Wade, 43, revealed his health issues on a recent edition of “The Why” podcast that was broadcast from a wellness retreat in late January.
The former Richards, Marquette and NBA star said that for far in 2025, he is doing well.
“I’m doing great in this moment,” Wade said. “I’m in a space right now of feeling safe. When you feel safe, you think you can do anything, and you can imagine anything.”
But it wasn’t like that in 2023 when he was concerned with some urinary problems. After consulting with several doctors, he was told he needed surgery for a tumor on his right kidney, which was performed Dec. 18, 2023.
“Thank God that I did do the surgery right because the tumor was cancerous, so I have one kidney and I have another kidney that is 60%,” Wade said. “They took 40% of my kidney to make sure that they can get all the cancer off of it right because if it sits there on your kidney, it spreads and they have to take more.”
Wade recommends that everyone gets checked up regularly. He also thanked his family for being at his side.
“I didn’t like that I was struggling, dog,” he said. “The one thing you never want to do as a man, you never want your family (to) see you weak.
“My family got in, they jumped in and I saw everybody show up for me and be there and I found strength in my family.”
Swanson not in Stars camp
The Chicago Stars 2025 season got off to a bizarre start that is leaving more questions than answers.
Training camp started Jan. 27 in the dome near SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview and minutes before the 9 p.m. start of the first training session, the club announced that star player Mallory Swanson would not be joining the team for the start of training camp due to “personal reasons.”
“I’d like to thank the club and the fans for their understanding during this time,” Swanson said in a statement. “I appreciate the kindness and encouragement from my teammates and all of the Stars staff and hope to be back with the team and playing in front of the fans as soon as I can.”
A Stars news release said that the organization “stands ready to provide Mallory whatever support she needs, both on and off the pitch, and we will be ready to welcome her back with open arms when she is ready to return.”
Swanson, a prolific scorer for not only the Stars, but the United States Women’s National Team, has 11 goals in 16 games for Chicago in 2022. But in 2023 missed all but two games of the season with a knee injury suffered playing for the U.S. team.
In 2024, she returned and scored seven goals in 19 games.
State standouts
Morton claimed ninth place in the IHSA state boys bowling meet, which ended Feb. 1 at St. Clair Bowl in O’Fallon.
Junior Desmond Zuro led the way with a 2,553 for 12 games while junior Matthew Roman fired a 2,530. Zuro was the area’s top individual with a 21st-place finish and Roman finished 26th.
At the IHSA state competitive dance event, which wrapped up Feb. 1 at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington, Lyons finished seventh in Class 3A with a 93.06.
Nazareth finished 10th in Class 1A with an 86.10 followed by Evergreen Park with an 85.56.
Cheers for Sandburg
Sandburg’s competitive cheerleading team remained perfect in qualifying for the IHSA state finals.
The Eagles have qualified in all 20 years of the event and continued that run by finishing second in the large-team division in the Joliet West Sectional on Feb. 1 with a 95.42. They were nudged out by Lincoln-Way West, which had a 95.57.
St. Laurence qualified in the medium-team division with a fourth place finish, scoring a 91.63 in Joliet.
At the Buffalo Grove Sectional, defending large-school state champ Marist took second with a 94.67. Mother McAuley qualified with a fifth-place finish in the large-team division with an 88.40.
Lyons (93.07), Stagg (92.73) and Shepard (88.97) took third, fourth and fifth respectively in the coed team division to qualify for state, which starts Friday at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington.
Regional royalty
Nine area girls wrestlers won regional titles on Jan. 30.
At Rickover, area regional champs were De La Salle’s Anapaula Cerna Rivera (100 pounds); Morton’s Hope Donnamario (105), Monica Garcia (120) and Violet Mayo (155); Curie’s Giselle Arambula (110); and Kelly’s Sara Martinez Lopera (170).
At Rich, area champs were Marist’s Sarah Parker (170) and Abby Parker (235).
At Hinsdale South, Lyons’ Avi Gonzalez (110) took a regional title.
Fire II home base uncertain
The Chicago Fire II announced its Major League Soccer NEXT Pro schedule, which begins on March 9 on at home against Huntsville City.
But the team has not announced where “home” is. The first three years of the team’s existence, it played at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview. According to a news release, “home matches will be confirmed at a later date.”