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What type of cancer did Jeff Dickerson have?

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LONG-TIME Bears beat reporter for ESPN radio in Chicago Jeff Dickerson died Tuesday, December 28, 2021, after a year-long battle with cancer. 

He was 44 years old.

Jeff Dickerson was 44 years old at the time of his death

What type of cancer did Jeff Dickerson have?

Dickerson had colon cancer and died in the same hospice care facility as his wife Caitlin died two years prior.

For eight years, Caitlin Dickerson had been undergoing treatment for melanoma and associated effects. 

Dickerson is survived by his 11-year-old son, Parker, and parents Sandy and George Dickerson, who were both graduates of Buffalo Grove High School and the University of Illinois.

As a person, Dickerson was noted for his cheerfulness and professionalism as a reporter. 

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Even while he battled illness, he worked to raise money for the Vaughn McClure Foundation, which he helped create to commemorate the memory of McClure, a former colleague and ESPN reporter who died in 2020.

Dickerson called his wife Caitlin an “inspiration” in 2019 because she “refused to let her cancer dictate her life,” according to ESPN.

When he was diagnosed with cancer in early 2021, he turned his resolve into a full schedule that included parenting Parker, fundraising for cancer research, and covering the Chicago Bears for ESPN internet and ESPN 1000 radio.

He also joined the board of the Vaughn McClure Foundation, a non-profit he helped create to memorialize McClure, a former Bears beat reporter and ESPN Atlanta Falcons reporter who died in 2020.

Dickerson was the emcee at the foundation’s first fundraising dinner in Chicago on October 14.

Few in attendance were aware that his illness was progressing.

Dickerson was in the Chicago sports market for two decadesCredit: Twitter

What are people saying about Jeff Dickerson?

When news of Dickerson’s death broke, he was described as “the consummate professional” by the Bears in a statement.

“JD took a great deal of pride in his coverage of the Bears for 20 years,” said the statement, according to ESPN. “He was a true professional and even better person. JD always was one of the first media members to arrive in the press box on game day, with a hello and a smile that could brighten anyone’s day. He was one of a kind and will truly be missed.”

Dickerson was regarded as someone who won the respect of teammates who valued his devotion to precision, according to San Francisco 49ers place-kicker Robbie Gould, who spent 11 seasons with the Bears.

“He always wrote a true story,” said Gould. “He always wrote what was happening at the moment. He didn’t try to back the bus up over somebody. He tried to get it exactly how the story was. … I think you saw a lot of guys give him a lot of credit because they knew he would write it right.

“He was a mentor to me as someone who aspires to get into the media world when football is over,” Gould said, “and I looked up to him.”

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