Mississippi native Anthony Herrera, who played villain James Stenbeck on the daytime drama “As the World Turns,” will visit Mississippi State next week to share stories of his battle with cancer and introduce his new book The Cancer War.
“I’m coming to talk about cancer treatment, my two stem cell transplants and poetry and literature,” Herrera said.
The Distinguished Scholarship Program, the Honors Program, MSU Libraries, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs are sponsoring Herrera’s visit to Mississippi State.
There will be a book signing open to the community on Oct. 21.
On Oct. 22, in the Grisham room of Mitchell Memorial Library, a clip of “The Wide Net” will be shown, and he will talk about screenwriting, directing and producing. Also on Oct. 22, Herrera will visit biomedical classes and biological sciences classes to speak about stem cell research.
“It is so nice that a native of Mississippi is coming home to share with us his experiences from his professional life on the stage as well as his personal life,” Nancy McCarly, director of the University Honors Program, said.
Jerome Gilbert, associate provost, said: “This is a great opportunity for MSU students to learn more about stem cells. Having a celebrity like Herrera share his personal experience makes the subject of stem cell research more real and helps people see the benefits of research.”
A Wiggins native, Herrera attended the University of Mississippi. There he was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, and he received bachelor degrees in zoology and English literature.
Herrera studied acting with actress Stella Adler in New York City.
His acting roles also include the daytime dramas “The Young and the Restless” and “Loving.”
Along with acting, Herrera has been a producer, writer and director. He produced and directed a documentary called the “Mississippi Delta Blues,” and wrote the screenplay for and directed Eudora Welty’s “The Wide Net.”
He also helped establish the Poetry Theater where actors perform their favorite poems. Herrera currently lives in New York.
In January of 1997, he was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma, which is usually fatal. He received two stem cell transplants at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center; his donor was his brother.
He went into remission on August 15, 1999, but relapsed the following year. His treatment was based on a concept that was developed at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
Dr. Ira Braunschweig, who had worked at the Anderson Center but is now the medical director of the Center for Medical Oncology in Garden City, N.Y., worked with Herrera, and he used Rituxam to control lymphoma and later had Herrera return to M.D. Anderson for lymphocyte infusion.
Herrera’s CAT scan on September 27, 2000, showed less disease without any treatment. He received four rounds of high dose Rituxam during Oct. 2000, and his CAT scans and Gallium scans since then have shown a steady decrease in the amount of lymphoma. This new treatment offers hope for patients with this fatal disease.