With Greg Papa on screen on the KNBR YouTube channel wearing a broad smile and clean-shaven for the first time in months, it was announced the 49ers’ popular radio play-by-play announcer would return to the booth for the final two home games of the season.
Papa, 63, will call the 49ers’ games on Sunday night, Dec. 28 against the Chicago Bears and the regular-season finale on Jan. 4 against the Seattle Seahawks, both at Levi’s Stadium.
The news was made public on Papa’s 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily show on KNBR-680 along with co-host Greg Silver, with director of broadcasting Bob Sargent calling in to “activate” Papa and make it official.
Papa told the Bay Area News Group last week he was meeting with his hematologist on Tuesday to determine whether returning to the booth for the last two home games was a possibility.
“I was told initially, `You’re not traveling for a year, you’re not driving a car for a year. You may not live for three years,” Papa said on the air. “I haven’t gotten the green light to travel . . . I think maybe we’ll stay home for the playoffs. We’ll see.”
Bob Hohler, the KNBR program director, said on the air, “This has been something that has been talked about for four months now. When we first found out about Pop’s diagnosis, the first thing was to do whatever we can to get him healthy. That’s still ongoing . . . Greg will tell you there’s still work to be done.”
Papa, who for months broadcast from home behind a protective bubble, is in remission but awaits a bone marrow transplant from his sister Judy at an undetermined date in hopes of preventing a relapse. He is also dealing with a three-year-old heart condition and had to stop medication for that issue temporarily while in chemotherapy.
“It was just a series of things that I was forced to miss for a long, long time,” Papa said. “But obviously my health and getting better was way more important. We’re not running victory formation yet. I’m far from that … I had an echocardiogram yesterday. The numbers are better. I’m not good enough where I can get the transplant, but they are going in the right direction, so hopefully that’ll be coming soon.
“I haven’t had chemo formally into my PICC (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) line since Oct. 13, so I’m getting better.”
Papa was wearing a UCSF hat on the air, representing the hospital in San Francisco where he has undergone treatment and stayed for 23 days with a dangerously low white blood cell count upon the diagnosis. He was initially unable to shave for fear of a cut and infection, but shaved for the occasion of his return.
