This is the first part of a three-part interview from Broncos Wire‘s Brandon Walker with Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway. This first story focuses on Elway’s diagnosis of Dupuytren’s contracture in a Q&A format. Readers can learn more about the condition at Xiaflex.com.
BW: You first shared your diagnosis and treatment of Dupuytren’s contracture in 2019. What first led you to seek treatment?
Elway: I think that, you know, it was something that I started to notice that, you know, a contracture of my hand, right? It was constricting and I started feeling the cords in both my left and right hand. I’ve had both of my hands released and so it was something that started my fingers and my fingers started contracting to where and I couldn’t put my hand flat on a table. I didn’t know what it was.
I went and saw (former Denver Broncos head trainer) Steve Antonopolis, and he sent me to a hand specialist and I went and saw a hand specialist and then was able to find something that was nonsurgical.
I’d had enough surgery playing football that I didn’t want to have any more surgery because that was one of the options and then was able to find, you know, the use of Xiaflex, which they used in my hand, which was able to be non-surgical and recovery time much, much shorter. So therefore I had both my hands released and actually, they’re doing very well.
It was something that wasn’t real painful for me, but it was something that was very annoying to me because I wanted to know what was going on.
And so it’s amazing Brandon, you know, since we’ve been talking about Dupuytren’s contracture, the amount of people that have come up and and and have the same issue. I think 5% of the population, you know, suffers with this condition.
And so it’s been fun to be able to get the word out there and get people to see their doctors and see their hand specialists to look at their different options and that there is a non-surgical option in Xiaflex.
BW: Do you know of any other people with this condition, or do you personally know anyone with DC?
Elway: You know, I don’t. You know, I’ve had several people come up, a lot of friends have come up to me and showed me that, you know, they’re different things because seen the different things that we’ve done in trying to get the word out on Dupuytren’s.
You know, it’s funny we just did an interview with Dan Patrick and he has it! It’s amazing the amount of people that have it that you know, it’s not really talked about and so it’s nice to have that feedback and give them my experience and be able to direct them to the non-surgical option, which is the use of Xiaflex, to where, you know, you go to your hand specialist and it’s really a 24-hour exercise.
One of the, you know, the painful things is you do have to have shots in the palm of your hand and put the medicine in there, but that was able to release my hand to where once I had the treatment, you know, I was able to put my hand back flat on a table and not nearly as uncomfortable of that feeling of the constriction of your hands and your fingers.
BW: Is that something you can do today is lay your hand flat on the table today?
Elway: It is, you know, and I think that especially my left hand is really, really good.
I’ve got another cord in my right hand that I’m going to have to go back and visit see the see the hand specialists again, but it’s it’s something that does not go away, but the medicine can allow you to get your hand straight and break that collagen up that that’s the buildup on the tendons in your hand.
And so, unfortunately, it’s something that doesn’t go away and eventually does start coming back a little bit, so I’m going to have to go back and have another one released, but it’s a much better option with Xiaflex than it is to have to go through the surgery process, which is, you know, from what I understand, pretty tough and might be six-to-eight weeks of recovery, which at my age, I don’t like to have to sit around for six or eight weeks. Anytime I get back out and get back on the golf course, the quicker the better.
BW: So were those your only two options for the Xiaflex and surgery, or were there other options out there for you?
Elway: Well, that’s really the only options. Xiaflex is really the only non-surgical option right now. (Broncos Wire note: Xiaflex is the only FDA-approved non-surgical treatment of Dupuytren’s contracture)
And so that’s why I chose that and, you know, been fortunate enough to have a relationship with them to be able to get the word out because this, you know, this condition affects 5% percent of the population. You know, it’s funny, (Dupuytren’s) is also called the Viking disease, so anybody that has northern European descent, which I do have, my mom’s side is Norwegian, and so therefore, probably where I got it because it is called the Viking disease.
But it’s something that, you know, this option was Xiaflex. It’s nonsurgical, with a much quicker recovery time. It’s definitely an option for a lot of people and they should see their hand specialists, go see a hand specialist and see if that option works for them.
BW: What would you tell someone who’s just learned that they’ve had to Dupuytren’s contracture? What would you tell them? What advice would you give them?
Elway: Well, from my understanding, I would say, you know, I would send them to their hand specialist (first) and if it’s a condition that doesn’t, you know, it progressively gets worse. And so I would think, you know, I would say the quicker the better that, you know, go see that doctor, a hand specialist and talk to him about it because if it’s a progressive thing that like like you said, you don’t get rid of it and it can progress you get worse.
And so I think it’s better to attack it early and you know, so the earlier they go and get an opinion from their doctor, you know, I think the better off they are.
BW: You put treatment off for two years (after finding out you had Dupuytren’s). Do you regret that decision for putting it off for two years?
Elway: You know, I do, even though I, you know, I think it’s everybody is always a little, you know, afraid sometimes it goes see a doctor to see what’s kind of going on with them. I was the same way plus having played football it was like all right, it’s just something that’s there and you know, it’s going to it’ll be there forever.
But I think it’s something like progressively got worse.
And so, like I said, the sooner the better when somebody realized that they have the constrictions in their, you know, the cords in their hands as well as their fingers, I think, you know, the sooner you get on it, the sooner you have it looked at, I think, for me, it’s been better that I attacked it earlier, especially with my left hand than my right hand.
BW: And especially the right hand being in your throwing hand, and now it’s feeling better.
Elway: I can actually yeah, I can hold a football now. It bothered me because I couldn’t get my hand around a football and I think that was the final straw when I finally said, “All right, I’m going to go,” and I went to our trainer Steve Antonopulos to kind of find out what was going on. And that’s when he directed me to the hand specialist and found out what (Dupuytren’s) is.
So now I can I can get my hand around a football again which makes me feel a lot better.
BW: And your hand around a golf club!
Elway: Even more importantly!
Stay tuned for the second and third parts of the interview still to come on Broncos Wire in which Elway gives his thoughts on rookie quarterback Bo Nix and the team’s 2024 playoff chances.
Brandon Walker
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