First nba gay player
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The years since coming out "have been the best of my life".
"As an athlete you learn not to panic in moments like this," he said, comparing treatment to going up against basketball star Shaquille O'Neal, or his decision to come out as gay.
"To me it's like, 'Shut up and go play against Shaq.' You want the challenge?
And if I can do that again now, then that matters."
The California native played for six teams in his 13 seasons in the NBA. He had previously been featured on Time Magazine's 100 most influential people list.
"And there is no bigger challenge in basketball than going up against prime Shaquille O'Neal, and I've done that."
Collins family had released a short statement in September saying that he had a brain tumour, but in his article he says "it's time for people to hear from me directly".
The 47-year-old sports veteran writes that the cancer was discovered after he was struggling to focus.
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Ads helps us keep our content free. This is what I'm dealing with."
Collins is currently being treated with a drug called Avastin to slow the tumour's growth, and has been travelling to Singapore for a targeted form of chemotherapy. In April 2013, Collins became the first active male athlete in the history of the four major North American sports leagues to come out as gay.
His twin brother Jarron also played alongside him at Stanford and had his own stint in the NBA.
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He writes that he hopes that his treatment will help develop better methods to fight the disease, and that he can lead the way similar to how he did as the NBA's first openly-gay player.
"After I came out, someone I really respect told me that my choice to live openly could help someone who I might never meet," he says.
I was in the CT machine at UCLA for all of five minutes before the tech pulled me out and said they were going to have me see a specialist," Collins explained.
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He describes how shortly after marrying his husband in May, he missed a flight because he was unable to pack his luggage. It came on incredibly fast," Collins told Shelburne.
Collins promises 'a hell of a fight'
"Something was really wrong, though. "I've had enough CTs in my life to know they last longer than five minutes and whatever the tech had seen on the first images had to be bad."
Collins said if he did not seek treatment, he would likely be dead within six weeks to three months.
However, Collins instead has elected to "fight" his condition as fiercely as possible.
"We aren't going to sit back and let this cancer kill me without giving it a hell of a fight," he explained.
"We're going to try to hit it first, in ways it's never been hit: with radiation and chemotherapy and immunotherapy that's still being studied but offers the most promising frontier of cancer treatment for this type of cancer."
What kind of treatment is Collins using?
The average prognosis for Collins' tumor, using standard treatment options, is 11-to-14 months, but the center's case is a little different.
Collins shared that his tumor is resistant to the typical chemotherapy used against glioblastoma.
"I've held onto that for years.
A brain scan later revealed the source of his issues with focus and memory.
"My mental clarity, short-term memory and comprehension disappeared - turning into an NBA player's version of 'Dory' from 'Finding Nemo'," he jokes about the forgetful fish from the Disney film.
Revealing his diagnosis to the world reminds him of his decision to come out, he says.
As a result, he is undergoing treatment at a clinic in Singapore using a method that "acts as a Trojan horse, seeking out proteins only found in glioblastomas to deliver its toxic payload past the blood-brain barrier and straight into my tumors."
"The goal is to keep fighting the progress of the tumors long enough for a personalized immunotherapy to be made for me, and to keep me healthy enough to receive that immunotherapy once it's ready," Collins said.
More on Jason Collins
A first-round pick of the Houston Rockets out of Stanford in 2001, Collins debuted with the New Jersey Nets and helped the team reach back-to-back NBA Finals in his first two professional seasons.
He played for six NBA franchises over the course of 13 seasons, averaging 3.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.
The 46-year-old has been serving as a league ambassador since the end of his playing days.
On Thursday, Collins opened up in an interview with ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, revealing that his brain tumor is actually Stage 4 glioblastoma, one of the most virulent types of brain cancer.
"I have Stage 4 glioblastoma, one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer.
This is me.
"Your life is so much better when you just show up as your true self, unafraid to be your true self, in public or private. He retired in 2014.
Back in September, the NBA announced that former center Jason Collins, the league's first openly gay player, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. Contact support
'A monster with tentacles' - basketball star reveals brain cancer diagnosis
Collins, who played for 13 seasons in the NBA, wrote that the challenges of treatment were somewhat similar to those he faced on the court.
This is the challenge," he wrote.