Jake Silberg of Maplewood had always been a fan of the quirky medical sitcom, Scrubs, tuning in whenever he could fit it into his busy schedule as an active teenager. He never dreamed that the show and its star, Columbia High School graduate Zach Braff, would help him get through cancer treatment or that he would end up appearing on the show. But that’s just what happened, and the episode (“My Cuz”) featuring Silberg’s walk-on role will air next Wednesday, April 22, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time on ABC.

Silberg’s world turned upside down in 2007 when he was diagnosed with Burkitt’s lymphoma, a rare and deadly form of cancer. It happened while he was on a summer vacation in Italy with his parents, Char Woods and Bill Silberg. He was 14, and enjoying the sights of Rome when he came down with what seemed to be appendicitis. Between the diagnosis and two surgeries, Silberg had to stay in the Italian hospital for more than three weeks. Silberg’s fellow patients were all Italian kids who didn’t speak English so he had nobody to talk with when his parents weren’t visiting. It was nerve-wracking to be in an unfamiliar city, waiting to find out what was really wrong and then dealing with the knowledge of having a seriously life-threatening illness. Silberg knew he needed some good laughs to get through all of this.

Thanks to a portable DVD player and a nearby English-language bookstore, Silberg’s parents were able to set him up with a boxed set of Scrubs and other comedies. Silberg became a huge Scrubs fan. He caught up on the entire series, finishing back in the states while undergoing chemotherapy at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center for most of the autumn. The chemotherapy was a tremendous ordeal, but a new drug made possible through money raised by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society saved Silberg’s life. And all through the ordeal the oddball Scrubs doctors helped keep Silberg’s spirits up while the real-life doctors blasted his cancer.

After Silberg finished treatment and was declared cancer-free, Woods decided to try getting in touch with Zach Braff to let him know what his work had meant to her son. Braff was staying in New York at the time because the writers’ strike had put his Hollywood work on hold. Through Braff’s father in South Orange, Woods was able to set up a visit. Hal Braff was moved by Silberg’s brave story and proud that his son’s work had made such a difference, so he was glad to help out another proud parent.

During Hanukkah of 2007, Silberg’s mother announced a visitor at their home. “Here’s someone who helped you get through chemo,” Woods said, and there was Zach Braff waiting to meet Silberg. After Silberg got over the shock, he and Braff talked and joked for a couple of hours, comparing notes about life at CHS and marveling at each other’s accomplishments.

“Zach is a real mensch,” says Bill Silberg. “It was just like having a neighbor drop by to visit a sick friend.”

During the visit, Silberg mentioned his Make-A-Wish Foundation wish—to appear on Scrubs. Braff replied, “Don’t burn your wish on that, I’ll take care of it for you.”

Braff made good on his word and then some. Silberg and his parents made the trip to the Scrubs set in Hollywood last August and spent several hours there. Braff was the perfect host, making sure Silberg met everyone including actresses Sarah Chalk and Elizabeth Banks, as well as creator/producer Bill Lawrence.

When Braff was busy doing scenes, Lawrence himself showed Silberg around the set, which is actually an old defunct hospital. Lawrence was pleased to learn that Scrubs was very popular in Italy and was impressed by Silberg’s knowledge of Scrubs trivia. Silberg remembered tidbits that even Braff had forgotten.

Silberg’s work as an extra (or “background artist”) had him sharing a scene with Braff. The scene is only a couple of minutes long, but as is the norm it took a long, long time to shoot. Braff went out of his way to make sure Silberg had fun doing the scene, at one point bringing in an attractive female extra to keep Silberg from feeling lonely.

Most of the people on the set didn’t know Silberg’s whole story, but everyone was extremely friendly and accommodating. Those who did hear the story were gratified that their show had helped someone get through such a horribly tough time. Silberg came away with a huge basket of Scrubs swag, a script signed by the whole cast and a script of the pilot signed by Bill Lawrence “to the only human being who knows as much about Scrubs as I do.” According to his father, Silberg was glowing for days afterward. “Everyone was so nice and caring,” he says.

Silberg is, of course, extremely lucky to be cancer-free, but he was also lucky to get his walk-on when he did because this is the last season of Scrubs and the writers’ strike might have ended it even sooner. Braff told Silberg what will happen in the last episode but swore him to secrecy, so the rest of us will have to wait and watch. Meanwhile, Silberg looks forward to a TV-watching party to celebrate his big debut next week.

Silberg has stayed in touch with Braff since their first meeting and has become sort of a liaison for getting Braff involved in community events. For the past two years, Braff has donated an answering-machine message to the silent auction at the Columbia High School Music Parents’ Association fundraiser, “For the Love of Music.” And if his schedule permits, Braff will be inducted into the Columbia High School Hall of Fame one year.

As for the Make-A-Wish wish that Silberg still has coming to him, he’ll use it to go back to Italy this summer and enjoy the family vacation that was cut short by near-tragedy two years ago.