Lowell was nearly 25 when a routine checkup by a Marlins physician after he was traded to Florida by the Yankees in 1999 revealed testicular cancer. Lowell continues to call it “the scariest thing I ever went through,” but he was fortunate. Radiation therapy eradicated the concern, and when a doctor thought the cancer might have returned in his hip a few years later, that turned out to be a false diagnosis.

“I overcame it — it was a tough road,” said Lowell, who hit .400 in the World Series. “I think when you overcome obstacles, it’s so much more rewarding when you have success.”

Lowell added that Lester’s comeback gave him an extra-special feeling. Not only are they now able to share in this accomplishment on the field, but they share the ties that bind from overcoming a life-threatening disease.

“I think I have a special reason to root for him,” Lowell said of Lester. “He took the mind-set that he’s not going to let cancer stop him from being a successful big league player. He’s such a good kid and he’s so easy to root for. I’m very happy he was able to come through in big way for us tonight.”

Lester, for his part, said he appreciated Lowell’s support, even though Lowell’s form of cancer was not exactly like his own lymphoma.

“There’s nothing you can really say — they’re totally different things,” Lester said. “If somebody gets [cancer], you really can’t go up to him and pat him on the back and say, ‘Stay with ‘em.’ Mike came up, gave me a hug and said, ‘You’re in my prayers. Keep fighting, and hopefully everything will turn out well.’”

So far, so good.

Lowell, at 33, joined the ranks of current Red Sox who have won a World Series MVP Award, a list that includes Curt Schilling (in 2001, with the Arizona Diamondbacks), Josh Beckett (in 2003, with the Marlins) and Manny Ramirez (in 2004, with the Red Sox).

And Lester, after winning his first World Series game, remains cancer-free.

Lowell and Lester aren’t the only celebrity athletes who have gone up against the Big C, though the latter’s being a starting player in a World Series match just a year after being in a chemo treatment regimen is something of a sports record all by itself. Peggy Fleming, Jeff Blatnick, Jim Eisenrich, Paul Azinger — and, of course, Lance Armstrong — are just some of those who have had to overcome the hardest challenge of all off the field and outside the arena.

John Kerry may not be a professional athlete himself, but he is famously athletic in his nonprofessional pursuits. And, like Lowell and Lester, he too has gone up against the Big C and won. That’s why he’s such an ardent supporter of Billy Starr’s annual Pan Mass Challenge. That’s why his friendship with and his backing for the Lance Armstrong Foundation is so strong.

And that’s also why John Kerry’s speech at last October’s Livestrong Conference was so personal and so powerful. If you haven’t watched or listened to that speech, we encourage you to do so now.

And while you’re at it, please take a moment to remember the very special victories of Red Sox teammates Mike Lowell and Jon Lester, the real comeback kids — and of those tens of thousands of others like them who may not be famous and may not get to ride in duck boat parades, but who are also brave enough and strong enough to keep on playing for keeps in the biggest and hardest game of all, day after day.